The Tears of a Dragon: Book 5: Future Tense
by LSMcGill
Summary: After the defeat of Rubeus and Naraku, a small problem with portals sends our hero's to Chibi-Usa's future. But with Zhu Shu's heart missing, and the true strength of Blackmoon finally revealed, can they overcome the plots of Xi'an Chi?
1. Disclaimer

_Authors Note: GOMEN! I forgot an important part! The Season five opening theme!_

_Disclaimer: Ranma__½__characters are the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Kitty, and Viz Video. Sailor Moon characters are the property of Takeuchi Naoko, Koudansha, TV Asahi, and Toei Douga, and DIC. Ah! My Goddess characters are the property of Fujishima Kosuke, Kodansha, TBS and KSS films; AnimEigo, Studio Proteus, and Dark Horse Comics. Other characters who may cameo are the property of their respective owners, as are all songs lyrics. All are used without permission. I did not write this for profit, but for practice, and as an homage to those whose work I have enjoyed so much I wanted to be part of their worlds. Will be removed at request of original creators or authorized rep._

_Zhu Shu (who shoo), Ying-Ying, Tao-Ching, Xi'an Chi (zy-an chee), and Clans' Dragon and Scorpion are mine, and may be used so long as I am asked beforehand. Legend asked me to say if you wish to use him in a story, you better ask HIM first.(Hey, manifestations of universal forces can make their own rules.) Chaos doesn't seem to care one way or the other, so long as there's lots of destruction and despair._

_And thanks to DB Sommer for allowing me to use Ai Konjou and the Furinkan Combat Cheerleaders._

_Higurashi no Naku Koro ni_

_Original / Romaji Lyrics_

_Furimuita sono ushiro no (shoumen daare?)  
Kurayami ni tsume wo tatete (yoru wo hikisaita)_

_Amadare wa chi no shizuku to natte hoho wo  
Tsutaiochiru  
Mou doko ni mo kaeru basho ga nai nara_

_Kono yubi tomare watashi no yubi ni  
Sono yubi goto tsuretette ageru  
Higurashi ga naku akazu no mori e  
Ato modori wa mou dekinai_

_Hitorizutsu kesarete yuku (aoi honoo)  
Kurayami no sono mukou ni (asa wa mou konai)_

_Kagami no naka de ugomeki nobashite kuru musuu no te de  
Saa dareka wo koko e izanainasai_

_Oni san kochira te no naru hou e  
Donna ni nigetemo tsukamaete ageru  
Higurashi ga naku kemono michi kara  
Kikoeteita koe wa mou nai_

_Kono yubi tomare watashi no yubi ni  
Sono yubi goto tsuretette ageru  
Higurashi ga naku akazu no mori e  
Ato modori wa mou dekinai_

_Oni san kochira te no naru hou e  
Donna ni nigetemo tsukamaete ageru  
Higurashi ga naku kemono michi kara  
Kikoeteita koe wa mou nai_

_English Translation_

_Behind where I looked back (Who's in the front?)  
I raised my claws at the darkness (and ripped the night apart)_

_Raindrops turn into droplets of blood  
and run down my cheeks  
If there isn't a place for me to return anywhere anymore_

_Take these fingers, my fingers  
I'll take all your fingers away  
To the unopenable forest where cicadas cry  
There's no turning back anymore_

_People disappear one by one (blue flames)  
On the other side of the darkness (the morning won't come anymore)_

_With countless wriggling and stretching hands in the mirror,  
Come on, lure someone here_

_Oni-san, come here, to where my hands clap*  
No matter how you run away, I'll catch you  
The voice that was coming from the animal trail  
where cidadas cry, is no more_

_Take these fingers, my fingers  
I'll take all your fingers away  
To the unopenable forest where cicadas cry  
There's no turning back anymore_

_Oni-san, come here, to where my hands clap  
No matter how you run away, I'll catch you  
The voice that was coming from the animal trail  
where cidadas cry, is no more  
_


	2. Chapter One: Out of the Blue

Chapter One: Out of the Blue

_Author's note: I'm trying to encourage myself to actually buckle down and write, so in that effort, here you go._

Urd's apartment wasn't empty when they arrived. She stared in surprise at the person waiting for her on the couch.

"Lind?" She blinked at the presence of Asgard's Commander of Valkyries. "What are you doing here?"

The Valkyrie rose. "Waiting for you, obviously. I'm here to escort you to someone who's requested a meeting."

"Huh?" Urd tried desperately to think of who she had pissed off enough to have them send the Valkyries after her. "I don't think I've done anything to deserve being arrested."

"You're not under arrest. I'm here to escort you because you don't have the necessary security clearances. Kami-Sama has granted her request to be allowed to speak with you, but I'm to escort you through security."

Urd blinked again. "Um… just who wants to see me?"

Lind smiled in grim amusement. "The Mother of Demons."

Mara gulped "But-but she's dead!"

Lind shook her head. "No, merely imprisoned for the last two thousand years." The Valkyrie stood. "However, Goddess Mara, that is a secret that you are expected to keep. You have been included in this invitation as well, but if I receive so much as a hint that this information has been leaked to Nifelheim, I will ensure your probation as a goddess will end with your joining her as a permanent guest. Do I make myself clear?"

Mara sighed. "I'm not a demoness anymore, Valkyrie Lind. Hild wants me dead, remember?"

Lind gave her a cold stare. "I am ordered by Kami-sama to accept your defection as valid, Mara. It will require more than just your word to earn my trust." She gestured towards the door. "If we may proceed?"

Urd took Mara's hand. "I'm sorry beloved. I know you're not a demoness anymore. We'll show all of Asgard the truth someday."

Mara shrugged. "I should be used to it. We demons treat the Fallen the same way. I guess I had just hoped that there would be less pettiness in Heaven."

"Pettiness has nothing to do with it, Goddess Mara." Lind said over her shoulder. "My department has simply not yet finished vetting you. Until you have been fully processed and we are sure that Hild has not left any nasty little surprises in your code, I will withhold judgment. We are uncertain how Legend was able to rewrite your kernel and recompile your base harmonics. Your signature is equal parts demonic and angelic and nearly incomprehensible to analysis. As such, we cannot be certain whether you are still subject to observation regardless of your intentions. My concern is Asgard's security. There is no place in Asgard more secure than the Mother's chambers."

"You could be nicer, Lind."

"I am a soldier, Urd. Polite pleasantries and false fronts are not in my nature."

Urd sighed.

More Valkyries awaited at the carriage outside, opening the doors to allow the goddess's entrance. Urd and Mara sat together on one side while Lind took the seat facing them. There were no windows. As the carriage started moving, Urd turned to Mara. "I've never heard of the Mother of Demons, but I'm guessing from your reaction you have."

Mara nodded. "Before Hild, Nifelheim had a different _Daimakaichou_. Her true name is lost, but she was once one of the 13 Great Lords of Chaos. I don't know what that means, but legends say she gave birth to the first demons, and set them to destroy mankind." Mara shrugged. "She's supposed to have also been slain by Kami-sama in the Jotun Wars before the founding of Asgard. Hild does not like for anyone to talk about her, and has forbidden anyone to access the historical records. All records prior to the Silencing are sealed."

Urd nodded. "Yeah, Kami-sama has restricted access to them too, at least records of the Early Kingdom." She looked over at Lind. "I'm guessing the Valkyries know a bit more about it than the rest of us."

"We do not question Kami-sama's wisdom, Urd," Lind replied. "And yes, we do have access to information on the Jotun Wars that is not generally available. The Mother is imprisoned not so much to keep her bound as to protect her."

Urd raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Hild is aware of her continued existence. The Mother betrayed Chaos and sided with Kami-sama during the wars, and her assistance was instrumental in ensuring Asgard's victory over the Chaos Lords. Hild is not the only great power who would like to see her existence ended and take her power for their own."

The carriage came to a halt and the door opened, revealing a featureless room. As Urd emerged and looked around, she couldn't even see the door through which the carriage had entered. There was no sign of the other Valkyries either. Lind walked over to a spot on the floor and placed the butt of her spear on a small circle. Patterns of light expanded across the floor and formed a vast mystical seal. Additional seals formed on the walls and ceiling and began rotating in different directions. Like the dials of a giant combination lock they turned until a series of interlocking symbols flared into life and a shimmering gate opened in midair. Lind motioned to the gate as a walkway rose from the floor.

"She is waiting. It is perfectly safe. I will await here."

Urd raised an eyebrow. "That's it? I'm just supposed to walk in and meet her? You aren't going to keep an eye on us?"

Lind shrugged. "I stand no chance of defeating her if she intended you harm, nor would I even if I took in an entire Host. But you have nothing to fear from her. As I stated, she is in protective custody, and her powers are bound not merely by Kami-sama's will, but by her own free choice."

Urd eyed the portal nervously. "You aren't helping me feel any safer, Lind." She looked over at Mara. "You up for this?"

Mara took her hand. "Surely she can't be any worse than facing Legend."

Urd nodded. "I certainly hope so." She gripped Mara's hand tightly as she took a deep breath and they began walking up the ramp.

0

A short walk down the rainbow colored tunnel let them out into a large and ancient arena of stone. Fine white sand covered the floor, and scattered pieces of rock lay here and there. Urd and Mara looked around, noting the vast cavern seemed empty of life, the rows of seats empty, and the sole feature of note a giant statue of black stone. It was female, with six arms, each bearing a massive blade. Ribbons of stone formed a mandala around it, and its sole adornment was a necklace of human skulls. Urd swallowed hard. "That's Kali-ma."

"Merely one of the many names I was once known by," a voice said cheerfully, drawing their attention from the statue to the nude white haired girl at her feet. "In fact, if you look at myths and legends that remained following the Silencing, you'll find a lot of names for me, the dark evil goddess of the night who exists to destroy mankind. It's a sad legacy to be responsible for."

Urd blinked. "You're the Mother of Demons?"

The girl shrugged. "When I was a Lord of Chaos, I despised mankind. I sought vengeance for all the pain and suffering I had endured at the hands of the human race, and when Chaos made me a "god" I reveled in shedding blood. I delighted in creating new species of youkai to torment and kill them. I scoured the dimensions to find the most vicious and bloodthirsty beings to experiment on and make even more vicious. I'm the source of nearly half the species of youkai that survive to this day." She shimmered slightly, and shifted her shoulders as two additional sets of arms joined the first. "Being an "Aberration" myself, I was somewhat prejudiced towards non-humans. My specialty is harmonic recoding." One of her left hands gestured at Mara. "I'm the specialist Lind is having analyze Mara here, though I haven't told her it's unnecessary. Legend's skills are far beyond mine, and there is no chance he made an error. I'm mainly trying to comprehend his coding and learn from it.

Urd swallowed hard. "I see. I-if I may ask, is that why you wanted to see me?"

The girl waved her hands and the stones scattered around the arena floor rearranged themselves into a table and chairs, a tea set appearing as she walked forward and lifted the kettle to pour. "In part. Please, come sit. You have some time to kill until the Gate becomes functional, and I am lonely. I rarely can entertain guests."

"How do you know this?"

The white haired girl laughed. "Even imprisoned as I am, I keep aware of the world. I'm the sysop of the sole remaining fragment of the Midgard Worldnet, and have been kept abreast of affairs through its connection to Yggdrasil." She finished pouring the tea and sat at the head of the table, elegantly grabbing a biscuit and buttering it while simultaneously stirring her tea.

Urd nervously set down, Mara joining her at the far end of the table. "But the Midgard Worldnet was destroyed in the Silencing. I'd know if any connections were still…" She trailed off. "Phoenixmoon, right?" she said disgustedly.

"Of course. Your older self set many things in motion that had to be hidden. Not least of which was my defection."

"Huh?"

"I was a servant of Chaos, Urd. I had nearly unlimited power. Surely you must realize I had little reason to betray her."

"But my older self convinced you to change sides?"

"Yes."

"How?" 

"She gave me a reason to hope."

"Huh?

"You have been tasked with granting the wish of Shan Pu, have you not?"

Urd blinked. "Uh, well, yeah. But what does-"

"That means you are aware of the Dragon's Child, no?"

"Zhu Shu? Well yes, but –

"And you do know that one of my many names is Shiva, the Dancer at the End of the World, right?"

The amused grin the girl was giving her was annoying. Urd racked her brain trying to figure out what- then it clicked.

"You taught her Shiva's Dance, didn't you?"

"Well, one of my shadows did. But yes, my true name is Sarhia the Dancer." She wiggled several arms in a graceful pattern. "I was created for no other purpose."

"Okay, so what does-"

"She's saying Zhu Shu is that reason for hope, Urd honey," Mara interjected. "Right?"

Sarhia nodded. "Zhu Shu, Ukyo, Konatsu, Ying-Ying, Rei. The shattered pieces of my soul scattered through time. The loves I was doomed to never know, separated from them as I was by a gulf of eons. Your older self showed me the most forlorn of all hopes - that I might one day be freed from my bondage to the Great Divider and be reunited with the time lost pieces of my heart."

Urd swallowed hard. "I see."

"Somehow I doubt you truly do, Urd dear. But that's still not the reason I asked to see you."

Urd shook her head in confusion. "Huh?"

Sarhia laughed. "My apologies. I spend so much time alone I sometimes forget I am not speaking to one of my shadows. I have asked you here to deliver a warning of what might be, because the future that was to occur no longer will. A wild card has been played that has shifted the probabilities beyond our predictions." She waved one of her right hands as what appeared to be a monitor appeared at her fingertips. "Three hundred years ago an anomaly occurred that was not supposed to occur. Midgard Worldnet was reactivated by a user request possessing clearance Legend Alpha Prime. "

Urd blinked. "That's Legend's personal code."

"Yes, but the request was not from Legend. It was from his Guardian. The logs show that Orihime sent a request via Midgard to the Valkyrie Arsenal. Due to a variation of Orihime's spirit code, and Midgard's need to come out of standby mode, it accessed Yggdrasil and verified that the request was legitimate. The records were corrected to the current Guardian's matrix and the request granted, with some modifications."

Urd raised an eyebrow. "Current Guardian?"

"Ukyo Kuonji." Sarhia smiled. "My beloved Orihime's reincarnation. Long before Zhu Shu met me, Orihime came to me here in this sanctuary to ask me to teach her to Dance. Ukyo is slowly regaining the knowledge and skills she once had in her former life, and Orihime was the greatest of all my students. The request made to the Arsenal was for her armor. The modification was a standing order from you to upgrade that armor to the current Valkyrie combat specifications."

Urd started. "A mortal has a functional suit of Valkyrie armor?"

"Not quite. The Guardian's armor is based on the Valkyrie Heavy Combat armor. The power systems and weaponry modes are quite a bit more powerful than the standard model. They have to be to handle the kind of power an unsealed first class goddess can channel. Ukyo can't use the armor at that level yet, but she's successful integrated with it. At present, she's nowhere near even a third class Valkyrie's abilities, but once she's recovered all her former skills, even Lind might not be able to match her. "

"Okaaay. That's pretty scary."

Sarhia laughed. "Oh don't worry about her, Urd. I know Orihime all too well. Her getting her armor is not a problem. The problem is that she wasn't supposed to get it three hundred years ago. Only Rei was supposed to follow Zhu Shu, Tao-Ching, Tatewaki and Nabiki into the past. Your older self had arranged for Rei to receive the Phoenix Wand that had been crafted for her wedding to Lin Tzu, which was prevented by the war and the Silencing. Ukyo going into the past has resulted in some rather dramatic changes to what was anticipated to occur."

"Such as?"

"Well. For one thing, despite receiving the Phoenix Wand, we expected Rei to keep vacillating about her love for Zhu Shu. In all of the previous scenarios, she has never had the courage to commit herself whole heartedly to her love for Zhu Shu. Her doubts and fears have always made her hesitate, and, well, it's usually been a disaster. The best outcomes usually resulted when we kept her focused on her role as a Senshi, and a protector of Zhu Shu before being a lover. Obviously that still didn't result in success, or we wouldn't have been forced to keep resetting."

"Resetting? Um… exactly how many times did my former self meddle with history?"

"Don't ask. You really don't want to know, and I can't honestly tell you, because even I don't know. A few hundred thousand times since she enlisted my aid, and countless times prior to that."

Urd swallowed. "I see."

"Anyways, we've always had slightly better results keeping her focused on being a Senshi. However, since Mara's defection resulted in Hild releasing Clove from death, something happened to Ukyo. As far as Phoenixmoon and I can tell, Clove weakened Ukyo's self erected barriers to admitting her bisexuality, which has always been one of the biggest headaches we've had to overcome. Orihime was just as stubborn despite the fact that she'd had only female lovers during her masquerade as a male. She'd convinced herself she was just waiting for the "right man" to come along, and not that she was just as attracted to women as men. Clove apparently broke down those mental defenses in preparation of using Ukyo like she is Konatsu, but decided it was too risky with Ke Lun and Lo Shen around. When she ended up going back in time with the rest, she was doubting her own beliefs in her heterosexuality, and Rei apparently sensed that, and, well, being a priestess as well as Zhu Shu's lover, tried to counsel her, only to end up seducing her instead."

Mara laughed. "That little minx! She did the same thing to Zhu Shu!"

"Yes, well, that also acted as a catalyst to her latent memories of Orihime. Which in turn led to Ukyo accepting her role as the Dragon's Guardian, and the premature activation of her armor, in addition to the fusing of that armor with a new weapon in addition to its original offensive system. Uyko was not supposed to recover the armor until she was in the presence of the _Dragon's Wrath,_ but now she has a weapon forged for her by the student of the _Wrath's_ maker, Totosai the Smith. He used the same dragon scales that were forged into the _Wrath_ to make the _Wrathseeker_ and that allowed her to summon the armor with the_ Wrathseeker_ as a fully compatible offensive system. Again, that's not really the problem, but it's another factor in the butterfly effect going on. "

"So what _is_ the problem?"

"Well, Zhu Shu's party was supposed to return to the present shortly after the other Senshi defeated Rubeus, in conjunction with the timewave that just passed. As Rubeus's mission was to capture Zhu Shu, his failure would have resulted in his sending a second agent, and the eventual chasing of that agent back through time to the future by the Senshi, including a powered up Rei and Akane, Shan Pu, and Ranma, all who would have forced Xi'an Chi back to the present. Zhu Shu, who would have still been unconscious as her body adjusted itself to the Shikon Jewel, and who would unfortunately still be vulnerable to manipulation because of it, would have been temporarily possessed by one of Xi'an Chi's shadows, and used as a focus to allow Xi'an Chi to open a time portal through which he would attempt to summon his armies of youkai from the future. This would however have been stopped by the Senshi, where together with Tatewaki, Ukyo and Tao-Ching, they would have recovered the _Dragon's Wrath_ and trapped Xi'an Chi in temporal limbo, ending him as a threat permanently."

"Okay. Which you said still didn't solve the problem of Chaos destroying the universe and killing Legend."

"No, because eventually Galaxia will arrive at Earth, and use the Shikon jewel to corrupt Zhu Shu and turn her into Chaos's avatar. Zhu Shu's depression and self doubt are going to be magnified due to the replacement of her heart with the Shikon jewel, and leave her vulnerable to Chaos. We've never yet found a way to recover her heart from Naraku before he is killed, and every scenario where we don't send her back in time has resulted in her capture by Rubeus, and her death at Xi'an Chi's hands."

"But this time is different?"

Sarhia's mouth twisted. "Yes. Because of Ukyo's recovery of her armor in the past, and its connections to Yggdrasil's teleportal systems, it caused a malfunction when they were returning from the past through the wormhole. It reacted with the teleport of the Senshi back from Rubeus's ship, and the temporal portal Emeraude created to come back and kill Rubeus. The wormhole wasn't calibrated to transport a Valkyrie's Omega class mana reactor in active mode in addition to the Dragon's Child. The power feedback into the teleportal control systems overloaded it and caused a reality warp in which all three portals overlapped because they were so close together in timespace and because the active Gate created by Clove created a natural anchor. In order to stabilize the wormholes, and prevent a catastrophic feedback that would have destroyed Tokyo, we had to shunt everyone into the wormhole leading to the future." She sighed heavily. "And that is not good at all, because in all previous scenarios in which Zhu Shu has gone to the future she's died. This time, she's gone to the future _after_ she's lost her heart and had it replaced with the Shikon Jewel."

Urd noticed that despite Sarhia's apparent calmness, one of her sets of hands was being wrung worriedly. "I take it this was something no-one has tried before?"

Sarhia shook her head. "No. I'm afraid your former self considered it an absolute worst case scenario." She shrugged. "However, no previous scenario also included Ukyo having already acquired the armor, nor did any include the party that traveled to the past, or Clove and Konatsu. Additionally, no previous scenario has _ever_ included Ying-Ying. Nor has she ever realized her abilities as a Guardian Spirit prior to the defeat of Xi'an Chi. That makes this occurrence an entirely unique scenario, no variation of which has previously been attempted."

Urd nodded. "I see." She smiled. "So basically you are saying that we're flying blind, humm?" she asked, an almost kittenish purr in her voice.

Sarhia gave her a raised eyebrow. "Yes, basically."

Urd grinned. "Thank Kami-Sama. It's about fucking time."

"What?"

Urd leaned back in her chair and put her hands behind her back as she grinned. "I've been jumping through hoops for my 'past self' for months, Mother dear. I can't even tell you how irritating it's been. The 'scenarios' are done now, right? No more manipulating this or that to make some particular event happen the 'right way' anymore. There's no more 'do overs', no 'saved games', no 'cheat sheet'. It's just full speed ahead and damn the torpedos now." She lunged forwards to lean over the table and look Sarhia in the eyes. "It means I'm no longer playing her little games, RIGHT?!"

Sarhia blinked. "Well, I suppose you could put it that way."

Urd exploded into a half dozen chibis all over the table, dancing in happiness and cheering.

Sarhia gave her a sour face as she propped her head on one hand. "I don't see why you're so happy about it."

Chibi Urd number 1 stopped dancing to look up at her and put her hands on her hips. "I don't see why you aren't happy about it! All my other self's 'scenarios' failed! This is the best thing that could have possibly happened. It means we're finally making progress instead of replaying the same old game."

Sarhia looked thoughtful. "I see. It's still worrisome though." She watched as Chibi Urd number 6 tangoed with Chibi Mara number 1 past her tea cup, a miniature rose held in Chibi Mara's teeth. She glanced briefly at full sized Mara, who was avoiding her gaze while trying to look innocent, then turned her attention back to Chibi Urd number 1. "I mean, every time Zhu Shu has gone to the future she's been taken by Chaos and become the Black Dragon."

"So? She's got all her friends and lovers with her this time. It's not the same scenario anymore." Chibi Urd number 1 crossed her arms. "Look, you say you're one of Zhu Shu's soulmates, right?"

Sarhia nodded.

"Then have a little faith in your loved ones. If I've learned one thing from watching Zhu Shu's little harem-ettes, it's that they will make miracles happen for that girl."

0

Ukyo opened her eyes to stare at a sky filled with smoky looking clouds. She blinked. The last thing she could remember was entering the portal. Now she was laying here, on what felt like rocks.

"Where the hell are we?" she asked no-one in particular, but her armor answered anyway, the HUD showing that she was at the co-ordinates which should have been the Tendo Dojo. It also reported the presence of life signs nearby, but told her that they were the only signs of life for miles.

She blinked. In addition to the group she had been traveling with, the armor was also showing icons for Ranma, Akane, Shan Pu, all of the Senshi, two unidentified organisms, and a small girl named Chibi-Usa. She sat up quickly and looked around.

The sensors were telling the truth. They were all there, the two 'unidentifieds' proving to be a pink haired girl and a white haired girl, both of whom had their backs to her. As she looked at them her armor seemed to be running scans, but was reporting it couldn't access "Midguard Worldnet" for positive ID.

Then the HUD popped up with a message "memory match found" and the names Ying-Ying and Ye-Ying replaced the 'unidentified'.

Her heart thudded in her chest. _I-it can't be!_

Then the pink haired girl raised her hand and rubbed at her eyes as she rolled over and yawned. Sleepy blue eyes opened to blink at her and the girl smiled.

"Ohayo Orihime-chan." she said in a sleepy voice.

"Ying-Ying?"

The pink haired girl blinked, then sat up. "Ukyo? But you were in the past!" She looked around. "What the hell, where are we?"

Usagi's voice came from the side. "Noisy Ying-chan. Just five more minutes."

Then Ying-Ying's eyes fell on the black figure lying next to Ukyo. "ZHU SHU!"

Ukyo blinked as the girl just was right there next to her, kneeling over the dragon girl. She hadn't even moved. Worried blue eyes looked up at her after she had placed a hand over Zhu Shu's forehead. "Is she okay? What happened to all of you? Why is she like this?"

Noises came from all around as the commotion started to wake the sleepers. Ukyo just froze for a second as she looked into the other girl's eyes. "Ying-Ying? But - I thought you were dead!"

The pink haired girl nodded. "Yes. We'll discuss that later! What is wrong with Zhu-chan!"

Ukyo shook her head. "We don't know for sure. She's exhausted, and there's other stuff. I don't know why she's like this. We just had a massive all out fight against a really nasty youkai named Naraku. My armor says she's perfectly healthy, just unconscious and her energy levels are low."

Ying-Ying let out a relieved sigh. "Thank all the gods."

"Ying-Ying?" came Rei's surprised voice. The pink haired girl looked over.

"Rei-chan!" She took in the phoenix dress the dark haired girl was wearing and grinned. "Wow, that looks even better in reality than it did in Orihime's sketches!"

Rei put her hand on her forehead as her mandala halo flared. "Okay, I'm not dead."

Akane laughed from behind her. "No. We're all alive. Well, except for Ying-Ying, but she doesn't count."

Then Rei got tackled by Konatsu. "Rei-chan! My Firebird! You're here!"

The scantily clad miko blinked in astonishment as she found herself suddenly in a kiss that resonated through her every bit as much as one of Zhu Shu's Chi kisses, the flood of excitement and love pouring through the butterfly in the back of her mind making her melt.

As it ended, she breathed heavily and looked up into Konatsu's deep brown eyes. "Wow. I don't know who you are, but I think I love you."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Rei, let me introduce you to Konatsu, once upon a time also known as Ye-Ying, the Nightingale of the Court of the Dragon.

"That would explain why I had an orgasm when the two of them kissed." Ukyo said shakily, her hand pressed against her chest. "Wow."

Then Konatsu bowled her over. "Your turn!"

Ranma looked down at the pair, Ukyo's hands slowly coming together on Konatsu's back as she surrendered to the relentless kiss, and chuckled.. "You know, I figured something like this might happen when she finally got to see Rei and Uc-chan. But I almost feel like a hentai being here."

"_Nyah_. Maybe Ranma do Shan Pu later."

"Rei!" Usagi's voice screamed. Rei whirled from watching Ukyo and Konatsu to see the blonde and she let out a squeal as she started running towards her.

Let's just say it got too chaotic to keep track of from there, hummm?

0

"Okay, so while we were fulfilling the wish and fighting Naraku in the past, you all were fighting Blackmoon in the present," Tao-Ching said. "And from the sound of it, I'm going to hazard a wild guess and say that maybe you girls were using the gate back to the Earth at the exact same time our portal from the past was open, and somehow or other all of us ended up here." he looked around the rocky wasteland around them. "Where ever 'here' is."

Ukyo nodded, "My armor keeps telling me 'here' is the Tendo dojo. Except that there's no dojo. My sensors report no life signs but us for a mile radius.

"I sense a very strong source of magical energy many miles in that direction," Clove said, pointing with her chin as Konatsu's arms were wrapped around Ukyo and Rei possessively.

"Which would be central Tokyo if we really are in Nerima." Tao-Ching noted.

"I think we are." Ying-Ying said from where she was sitting with Zhu Shu's head on her lap. "They are faint, but I can still sense Lo Shen's wards. But this worlds energy has been twisted and devastated, as if an enormous magical war had been fought."

"It's going to be bad to be exposed like this when night comes." Tao-Ching said. "And we got no food or water. Left it all on the horses. Our best chance is to head in the direction of the power source. If there's energy, hopefully that's a sign of civilization."

"I can go scout." Ukyo said. "My armor's repaired itself."

"We don't know what might be out there. Be very careful and come back if you even get a hint of something dangerous." He looked at the others. "Okay, Tatewaki and I will be point. Ranma, Akane and Shan Pu, you will be our back up. Kagura, you take Kanna, Chibi-Usa and Zhu Shu on your feather, and the Senshi and 'Clovatsu' will guard you. Nabi-chan will shield us if anything attacks. Rei, you got aerial cover, try to keep the brightness to a minimum."

Rei laughed. "I'll do my best."

"Alright, any questions?"

"Clovatsu?" Clove asked icily.

"Think of a better name for the pair of you." Tao-Ching smirked. "Okay, now let's move out.

0

Ukyo was back in less than fifteen minutes. "There's a small city over there, with a giant crystal tower in the center. It's inhabited, but I didn't get close. Looked like it had some pretty hefty AA defenses set up. Hard to see through all this mist, but you'll probably be able to see it soon. It's lit up like a christmas tree."

"How long to get there you think." Ranma asked.

"Maybe a half hour. There's what looks to be a road about a quarter mile ahead. That will make travel easier."

Tao-Ching stroked the stubble on his chin and frowned. "I don't like that it's a fortified position, but we're kind of desperate here."

Ukyo shrugged. "We've got enough firepower here to take out the entire Self Defense Force if need be."

"True enough."

0

Ten minutes later, they got their first sight of the city.

And Chibi-Usa started crying, throwing herself off the feather into Usagi's arms and burying her head in her shoulder.

"Wha-" Usagi cried, startled. "What are you doing, brat!"

Tear filled red eyes looked up at her. "You have the save Mommy!" She pointed to the tower. "Mommy's in there and she won't wake up! P-p-p-please! You have to save her!"

Usagi blinked as they all looked at the massive tower of crystal jutting up from the center of the city. The city itself was a fantasy of crystal as well, it's sheer walls glowing from the lights of city within, their translucency revealing shadowy hints of the buildings behind them. It was beautiful beyond description, as glorious as a flower...

... and a stark contrast to the blasted lands around them. As were what appeared to be a hastily built and makeshift series of anti-aircraft defenses surrounding the incredible vision.

Usagi patted Chibi-Usa on the head and hugged her. "There, there, little brat. We'll save your mommy. I promise."

"You - you will?"

"Hey, I'm Sailor Moon, right?"

Chibi-Usa nodded, sniffling as she dove into Usagi's shoulder again and sobbed.

"So, this is where Chibi-Usa is from, huh?" Ranma asked.

Usagi shrugged. "I guess so. Kasumi onee-san said she was our kid from the future, so I guess I must be in that tower over there."

She patted Chibi-Usa's head again before noticing that there was absolute dead silence around her. She looked up to see that everyone was staring at her, mouths agape.

"W-what did you just say?" Akane finally managed to ask.

Usagi blushed and scratched her head nervously. "Um, yeah. Well, the brat's my daughter, kinda." She giggled weakly. "It's kinda embarrassing, you know?" She cringed. "Why are you all staring at me?"

Makoto buried her face in her hand. "Princess, don't you think you could have mentioned this earlier?"

Mina clucked. "That's not the real question Mako-chan. The real question is who's her father, no?"

Usagi turned beet red. "It's Mamoru, you meanie! Who else would it be?!"

"Actually," Tao-Ching interrupted. "The real question is what we should do about the troops rushing to surround us."

The senshi looked up to see a column of hovering vehicles breaking into two groups as they rapidly encircled them. Tao-Ching held up a hand to the group as they took stances. "Wait. Let's see if they are hostile before we provoke them."

Ukyo nodded with the rest as she dropped back from point to join Rei hovering over the feather, _Wrathseeker_ appearing in her hand. Tao-Ching stepped in front of the group as the only vehicle that had remained on the road approached. It pulled to a stop and a voice called out, "Identify yourselves!"

"My name is Tao-Ching Hibiki. My companions and I are lost and seeking shelter, and one of our members is injured. We intend no harm and have children with us."

"A likely story, _youkai_. You are quite brazen to approach Crystal Tokyo unconcealed. Surrender your weapons or be destroyed."

"You stop threatening my friends!" Chibi-Usa yelled, suddenly appearing in front of Tao-Ching. "I brought them to save mommy!"

The canopy of the vehicle in front of them popped open to reveal a kitten standing on the dashboard in front of the soldier driving.

"Princess?" the kitten asked in shock. "We thought Blackmoon had captured you!"

"Diana!"

0

"Is the military escort actually needed?" Tao-Ching asked as they entered the city.

"It's for your protection, Sir." the officer in charge of the three man attachment said in reply. "While you may be friends of the Princess, the appearance of _youkai_ within Crystal Tokyo will likely cause some outrage among the few citizens left until word can get around that you are not associated with Blackmoon. Once you are within the Palace grounds, you should be safe."

"I see."

"So why are _youkai_ so feared here?" Rei asked. "What became of the Great Accord?"

"Great Accord? I am afraid I have no knowledge of that, Miss. I'm just a simple soldier. Most of the records before the _Youkai_ Extermination were lost."

Rei paled. "_Y-y-youkai_ Extermination?"

"Yes mam. My Grandfather fought with the Iscariot's 34th division. He helped Queen Serenity liberate Japan from the forces of Konjou's demon army. He loved to talk about being present when Queen Serenity took down Bunny Queen Nabiki as Sailor Moon. He was one of the soldiers who took part in the storming of Furinkan."

The soldier stopped talking as he realized the entire group had come to a halt in shock. "Huh?"

"B-b-b-bunny Queen N-n-nabiki?" Nabiki stuttered.

"No way, why would I wanna fight Nabiki?" Usagi asked. "She my sensei's sister!"

"That cat girl Cooan said something about you, Ai and Kodachi being some sort of youkai crusaders in her history." Akane said to Nabiki.

"Well, yeah, I plan to go to lawschool and become a lawyer to fight for youkai civil rights, but 'Bunny Queen Nabiki?' Geez, how humiliating." Nabiki groused, her rabbit ears drooping.

The soldiers around them were as white as ghosts. Their leader was pointing at Nabiki with a shaking hand. "y-y-y-y-y-y-ou're B-b-b-b-b-b-b-bunny Qu-qu-qu-"

"Nabiki Hibiki, yes."

"You're not a Hibiki yet, sis." Akane chided.

"Stop quibbling the details."

He turned to Tao-Ching "Then y-y-y-y-our h-h-h-h-her d-d-d-demon c-c-c-c-cat?"

"Smilodon, actually." 

The officer turned and started walking, his knees shaking.

The rest of the walk to the palace grounds was silent, broken only by the occasional hard swallowing noise.

0

The soldiers let them enter the Palace grounds alone, appearing to be very glad their escort duties were done. Chibi-Usa ran ahead of them behind the kitten Diana towards the figure with short blue hair standing on the steps waiting for them.

"Ami-_oba_!" She cried as she ran towards her, arms wide.

"Careful, small lady! I'm a hologram. You can't actually hug me!"

"I'm so happy to see you. Look! I brought people to save Mommy! I found Sailor Moon and all her friends!"

Holo Ami smiled at all of them. "I'm so very glad to meet you. It's so wonderful to see all of you. Thank you for coming to help Princess Usagi, but-" She blushed prettily as she gave them a sheepish grin. "This is so embarrassing though. I-I can't seem to recall who any of you are..."


	3. Chapter Two: Millennial Reunions

Chapter Two:

"Well," Holo Ami said, "The Youkai Extermination started when a criminal organization called Fairy Tale was blamed for the Fukushima incident. We never got all the details, but apparently their flying fortress crashed into the sea and created the tsunami, while a wave of youkai survivors came ashore with massive publicity. The SDF panicked and started battling with the refugees, and a massacre occurred. In protest over the mass slaughter, youkai all over Japan started a riot, and that escalated into a full scale revolt after the Youkai council was assassinated by a bomb. In response to the armed rebellion the Japanese government joined forces with the Vatican's Iscariot division and began a wholesale war against the youkai. That war tore Japan apart and slowly spread to the entire world. For nearly 20 years, man and youkai fought for their very survival."

"I see," Nabiki said, looking thoughtful. "So where does 'Bunny Queen Nabiki' come in?"

"During the early part of the war, she was caught in one of the terrorist incidents, where the youkai used some sort of spell to forcefully turn humans into youkai. She was turned into a bunny girl and was taken to an internment camp, where she developed some very strong magical abilities. No-one knows for sure what happened there, but six months after her internment, she slaughtered the entire camp and escaped. Within a year, she had more or less become the youkai's leader because of sheer power. She organized the youkai and nearly wiped out the humans in Japan. She held control for almost a decade before we finally managed to overcome her. Mars, Uranus, and Neptune were killed and Jupiter lost her arm. The rest of us were so severely wounded that Saturn barely managed to save us. Things were so bad that the Earth itself was almost unlivable. In order to save the few humans remaining, Hotaru had to call down a second Silencing to let the Earth heal. For a thousand years, humanity slept, and when we awoke a hundred years ago, we built Crystal Tokyo. Neo Queen Serenity has kept watch over them ever since."

Tao-Ching nodded. "Okay, that firmly establishes this as a very different timeline than ours."

He looked around at the others sitting around the table, and smiled as he looked at the seating arrangements. He and Nabiki were next to Holo Ami, followed by Akane, Ranma, then Shan-Pu. Then the Senshi, with Usagi at the far end, then Rei, Ukyo, an empty seat, Ying-Ying, then Clove/Konatsu, with Chibi Usa sitting right next to Holo Ami. It said something about the web of relationships unconsciously expressed. He speared another piece of chicken on his chopsticks and leaned back in his chair.

"Alright, so if I understand the current situation, you are under siege by Blackmoon, and Serenity and Endymion are currently incapacitated. You, Makoto, and Mina are in stasis maintaining the shields, and the status of Saturn is unknown following a failed assault on Nemesis."

Holo Ami nodded. "Sadly, yes. That is all too accurate a summation. Our fleet is destroyed, the rest of the Earth has been turned into a barren wasteland again, and I fear we are unlikely to survive a full scale assault from Blackmoon. The Earth is dying. Soon, it will be as dead as the moon has become."

"So, Blackmoon is travelling back in time attempting to rewrite the future."

"I can think of no other reason. We never had contact with them in our past."

"But the past you have is also different from ours." He rubbed his stubble. "So where did they diverge I wonder."

Rei looked up. "Um... At any point did you ever encounter Zhu Shu?"

Holo Ami shook her head. "No. Other than the Senshi, I've never met anyone in your group. And to imagine that you are friends with Bunny Queen Nabiki is simply astonishing."

"I'm not the 'Bunny Queen' dammit." Nabiki muttered.

"My apologies. I- I have some very painful memories of her, and seeing your face..."

Nabiki waved it off. "It's okay. I can certainly say that if I know me, an evil me is not someone I want to tangle with." She yawned. "And to be blunt, I'm just too fucking worn out at the moment to give a damn."

"Of course. This entire wing is yours to use as you wish. Please, refresh yourselves and rest. If you require anything, merely ask. The Palace AI will provide anything you desire."

She bowed and sparkled as she faded out, leaving the group sitting around the table.

"So how is Zhu Shu," Akane asked.

Ying-Ying smiled. "As far as we can tell, she's merely sleeping. She's completely exhausted. There are a couple of oddities I can't really understand though. For one thing, her earrings are rather puzzling. They appear to be goddess seals, just like those worn by Belldandy, Urd and Skuld. They can't be removed, and the signature on them appears to be Kami-Sama himself. Additionally, the signature of her curse is gone."

"Gone?"

Konatsu's eyes shifted to green. "Yes, gone. I've spent years studying the Jusenkyo curses. I know the base signature for it intimately. It's completely gone. She's merged both her cursed and uncursed forms into a single body, and appears to be permanently transformed. And I have not one single idea how she's done it. It's flat out impossible. It's a major deity class curse."

Ying-Ying nodded. "Even Legend said it would take direct action from someone like Kami-Sama or himself to undo it, considering who it was who cursed the springs."

"So Legend can cure the curse?" Ranma asked. "And he didn't do it?"

"It's not that easy, Ranma. Divine intervention on the level needed to undo the curse would require a complete violation of all the treaties between Asgard and Nifelhiem. Had Legend done so, he would have basically permitted Hild to declare Ragnarok." She sighed. "There is more going on than you realize in the worlds outside of your normal perceptions. Were Kami-Sama or Legend to act directly, it would free the forces of Chaos to take a direct hand in the world of mortals. The consequences would be unimaginable."

"Like what?"

Clove shook her head. "Do you remember how easily I took out Rubeus once I was free to use my full power? Imagine an army where the lowest ranking soldier would probably be my equal. Lo Shen and I are probably about as strong as our Master was, and he claimed he had barely managed to survive a battle with a Valkyrie."

"We coulda beat Rubeus if he hadn't surprised us while we were getting dressed for practice!" Usagi pouted. "That pervert!"

"I'm just glad he's gone, Princess." Makoto said. "From what Akane-sensei told us, we're lucky they were so quick to come rescue us. I don't even want to imagine what he might have done to us. We'd have probably ended up replacing the Phantom sisters."

Mina shuddered. "Probably."

"Regardless, I still want to know about Zhu Shu." Akane pointed out. "You said there was more odd stuff about her. Like, why would Kami-Sama put those earrings on her?"

Ying-Ying bit her lip. "There's only one reason for them, Akane. Goddesses are sealed to prevent their powers from leaking out. An unsealed goddess in the mortal plane could destroy a city entirely by accident. Greater deities like Hild or Kami-Sama can't even come to the mortal plane unless they do so through an avatar. Legend himself is larger than Japan. For Kami-Sama himself to seal Zhu Shu, it has to mean that something occurred which boosted her power levels to near deity class or beyond. She is the Daughter of the Dragon. It's not inconceivable that she could have absorbed energy from Peorth's wish transmittal beam. She might have been the reason for that resonance effect that knocked the magic users out."

"That even affected Konatsu in my workroom in China." Clove said. "I had wondered what that massive surge of power was."

"So Zhu-chan is a goddess now?" Rei asked, eyes wide.

Ying-Ying blushed. "Um... well... technically she always has been, Kinda..."

"Just like I'm 'technically' one too, supposedly." Clove added with an eye roll. "We are both Daughters of the Dragon after all."

"She did display some incredible power levels once Naraku released her. I couldn't even touch her." Ukyo noted. "And think about what she did to Naraku. If she hadn't been fighting with the Shikon Jewel, he'd never have been able to touch her either." She shuddered. "I can only imagine that she was still fighting inside him. If he had been able to absorb her like Kagura said he was capable of, I doubt even Rei's attack could have hurt him."

Nabiki grimaced. "I don't even want to imagine what could take a point blank nuclear blast undamaged." She plucked an apple from a bowl halfway down the table with a pink hand and tossed it to herself. Akane shook her head.

"Damn sis, I still can't believe you can do that."

Nabiki laughed. "This coming from my sister, the Senshi."

"I can't believe that Rei's engaged to Ukyo and Zhu Shu." Usagi said, blushing. "And that dress!"

Rei gave her a raised eyebrow. "I happen to like my dress, Usagi. And I am perfectly happy with my chosen girlfriends." she said firmly.

Mina waved her hand dismissively. "She'll get used to it Rei, or I'll spank her again." She smirked. "I for one think it's wonderful to see you this happy. I'm getting quite jealous."

"So what else is odd about Zhu Shu?" Akane said, attempting to get the conversation back on topic.

"Other than the Shikon Jewel apparently replacing her heart? I don't know. All of my senses tell me she's perfectly fine, just asleep. From what I understand of Ukyo's sensors readings, she's fine. Rei's abilities say she's fine. I even had Clove look her over. From every physical and mystical standpoint, as far as we can tell, she's perfectly fine for someone who had a sword impaling her a couple of hours ago. Her regenerative abilities appear to be immense." Ying-Ying spread her hands. "Until she wakes up, I can't tell you any more than that."

"So how do we get home?" Ranma asked. "I mean, I have to assume we can since Chibi-Usa came back, and the Blackmoon did too." He cracked his knuckles. "I'd feel a lot better getting Zhu Shu home."

"You said you'd help my mommy!" Chibi-Usa complained.

Akane gave her a reassuring smile. "We will honey. We're just worried for our friend."

"Yeah, kid. Regardless of what else we do, we'll see what we can do to help your mom. Anyway, can you tell us how you got back to our time? If we can go back and forth, we can take our friend back home while the rest of us see what we can do to help." Tao-Ching said, giving the little girl a reassuring smile.

Chibi-Usa shook her head at Tao-Ching. "I- I stole a key from Setsuna-oba. She's probably mad at me." Her eyes teared up. "I just had to try and get help for mommy!"

"We know little lady. I'm sure your aunt will forgive you. Do you still have that key?"

Chibi-Usa nodded and showed them a small heart shaped key. "But Setsuna-oba is sure to be watching the Gate now."

"We should have no need of sneaking, Small Lady." Kuno interjected. "T'would be beneath us as noble warriors. I am certain that we need but explain our need to Lady Pluto and she would aid us in returning our comrade to her proper time."

"I am afraid that is not possible at this time, Sir Kuno." A new voice said, prompting them all to turn towards the entrance to their dining room. A tall women with long green hair stood there, wearing a Senshi uniform and carrying a long staff shaped like a key in her hand. "While it is true I would be willing to let you to return to the past, since I have received permission from Kami-Sama to allow you passage, I cannot at the present do so."

"Setsuna-oba!" Chibi-Usa looked nervous as she tried the shove the key back into the neck of her blouse.

"Calm down, Small Lady. I forgive you for stealing the key. This time." She turned back to the rest. "Unfortunately, your arrival has created a disruption of the Gate of Time. The passage is impassible for the moment. Gate has assured me that the disruption is temporary, but you are likely to be here for a few days at least before travel is possible."

Tao-Ching grimaced. "Damn. It figures. It's never just easy."

Akane was staring at the staff in Pluto's hand. "You're, um... You're Sailor Pluto right?"

The green hair girl bowed slightly. "Indeed, Akane Tendo. I am the Senshi of Time. You are Sailor Earth, I believe? It's a pleasure to meet you, though I am afraid I have no memory of there having been a Sailor Earth in my history. This parallel universe you have traveled from has many changes it seems."

"Parallel Universe?" Ranma asked.

"Yes. It must be obvious to you that our universe cannot be the same one you live in. As far as Gate has been able to determine, our universe diverged from yours at a point in time approximately four years prior to the temporal co-ordinates from which you originated. The pivotal event appears to have been the deaths of Fei Ying Ying and Song Zhu Shu at the hands of the sorcerer Xi'an Chi. The data beyond that point becomes obscured and impossible to trace, though we have been able to confirm that Xi'an Chi was instrumental in the staging of the Youkai Extermination."

Ying-Ying was looking at her in horror. "I - I was killed by Xi'an Chi? Eeew." She stuck out her tongue in disgust. "I'm much happier about dying by my own hand now."

"In our timeline, yes. More than that, Gate cannot determine. As it is, the disruption has also affected Gate's connection to the Yggdrasil mainframe. As all other connections between Earth and the Heavens were severed during the Extermination, it has severely compromised our ability to retrieve data about the past."

Tao-Ching shrugged. "We've got more than enough to work with for now. Since we cannot get back immediately, I recommend we take advantage of our host's hospitality for the night and see what we can do in the morning." He sighed. "Please forgive us, Lady Pluto, but we've been through hell today. We're all exhausted, and half dead."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Technically, I'm all dead."

Tao-Ching gave her an evil eye.

Pluto smiled. "I apologize for intruding, but I desired to inform you of the situation and to collect Small Lady. It is past her bedtime, after all."

"Awww, do I hafta, Setsuna-oba?"

Pluto gave her a look. "I've been lenient as it is, Small Lady. Queen Serenity would be quite put out were we to simply allow you to continue to run rampant."

Usagi came around the table to pat the smaller girl on the head. "Don't worry, brat. We'll save your mommy. You be a good girl for your aunt, okay?"

Chibi-Usa nodded and let Usagi help her down from her chair. She took Pluto's hand and waved. "Good night everyone, sleep tight."

After she left, Nabiki yawned again. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm gonna drag furball off for a quickie before bed. See you all in the morning."

"Nabiki!" Akane said, her face bright red.

"What? Like you're not going to do the same with Ranma and Shan-Pu?"

"You - you don't have to be so blunt about it!"

"Oh please, Akane. We're all old enough to understand what sex is."

Akane jerked her thumb at the four beet red senshi. "You forget they're here?"

Makoto laughed nervously. "Um, it's okay Akane. I - I'm not exactly a virgin."

"You're not?" Usagi asked in shock.

"Oh come on Princess. I used to be on Kodachi's rhythmic gymnast team. I didn't _always_ despise the bitch, I'm ashamed to say."

"She's not the same, Mako-chan." Akane said. "She's sorry for what she did to you."

Makoto waved her hand dismissively. "It's not going to be that easy to forgive her, Akane-Sensei." She yawned as well. "And it really doesn't matter at the moment anyway. We all need a break." She gave Mina, Ami and Usagi a wicked grin. "So, Princess, wanna go make out too?"

Usagi looked like she was about to melt, her face grew so red. "M -m-m-m Mako-chan!"

Makoto laughed. "Just kidding, Princess."

Minako giggled. "Oh, if I had only had a camera!"

Ami shook her head as she smiled. She looked at Rei. "Rei-Chan, are you going to share a room with us tonight or..."

"I'm sorry Ami-chan, but I'm going to be with Ukyo, Ying-Ying and Konatsu." Rei said with a blush. "I have so much I want to talk to you all about, but I really really want to be with my soulmates tonight. It's the first time I've ever seen Konatsu, and I've never been able to see Ying-Ying outside the spirit realm."

Ami smiled. "It's okay, Rei-chan. I understand." She blushed slightly. "I would probably do the same if I had someone to love."

Kuno stood, offering his hand to Kagura. "Very well, if you shall excuse us, Lady Kagura and I shall bid thee good night."

Kagura bowed. "Yes. and I wish to thank you all again for freeing us from Naraku."

Akane shook her head at their retreating backs. "I still can't believe he didn't try to glomp me even once."

"Or me," Ranma added. "I haven't even heard him call me 'pigtailed girl' tonight. He's changed as much as Kodachi has."

"_Nyah_, Shan-Pu glad he no try glomp Ai-rens. Is Shan-Pu job. _Muuuu_."

Akane tousled her hair. "Yes, it certainly is." She looked over at Ying-Ying. "So you're sure Zhu-Chan is alright?"

The ghost girl nodded. "She's sleeping peacefully, and I have a spell on her to alert me to any changes, and the Palace AI is monitoring her as well. She's in the room furthest down the hall just before the baths. Anyone trying to get to her will have to pass by all our rooms first, and Clove's put up wards as well."

Akane pushed her chair back. "Okay, then I'm a calling it a night too. You guys have fun."

Shan-Pu giggled. "Shan-Pu wish you much fun too, _myah_. She go play with Ai-rens's now."

The group broke up, and silence settled over the dining room as they all disappeared into their rooms. For a few minutes, nothing moved, but finally, a quiet figure rose from her chair and walked down the hall until she stood in front of Zhu Shu's room. A tiny pale hand reached out to touch the door as Kanna stood there for several long minutes.

Then she spoke in her near whisper. "Thank you."

Without another word, she turned her back to the door and sat on her knees in front of it, clutching her mirror as she settled in to stand guard.

0

"Wow, what a nice room." Rei said as they looked around the bedchamber they had been provided.

Ukyo nodded. "Only one bed though."

Ying-Ying bounced on the bed as she sat. "Well it's certainly big enough for all four of us." She gave Ukyo a sultry smile. "Almost as big as Lin-Tzu's"

Ukyo blushed. "Um... yeah. Not as ornate though." She looked around the room as her armor stopped glowing. "Well... " She broke off as Konatsu wrapped herself around her back.

"Isn't it wonderful! I finally get to meet all my beloved soulmates! I am so happy we get to be together finally!" She nuzzled Ukyo's neck. "And that lovely armor of yours has been driving us to a frenzy ever since we woke up this afternoon. Poor Clove is completely incoherent every time we look at you."

Ukyo gave her a sidelong look. "That black dress of yours isn't too shabby either. However, before we do anything else, I am going to go get a bath. I got smashed into the ground a few times today and I feel grimy."

"Want company?" Rei asked.

Ukyo shook her head. "Nah, stay here and get to know our other soulmates. I have enough of Orihime's memories to make me familiar with them. I can't wait till Zhu Shu wakes up. She'll be so happy."

Rei and Konatsu pouted as she slipped out the door. "Darn it. I wanted to take that armor off her myself." Konatsu sighed.

Rei giggled. "I'm not sure you could. It's some sort of very powerful magic. It took the brunt of a absolutely amazing attack from Zhu Shu when she was under Naraku's control. Without it, I think she'd have died instantly."

Konatsu moved over to press up against Rei. "And what about this lovely fiery dress of yours?" she asked as she played with one of the cloth tassels hanging from the golden chestplate.

Rei blushed. "Well... I do believe it will come off like a normal dress. But it was conjured up when I used the Phoenix Wand, so I am not entirely certain."

Konatsu's eyes shifted to green. "Well it is definitely magical in nature as well, though nowhere near the level of the Guardian's Armor. I can see enchantments for defense, regeneration, and environmental manipulation." Clove said. "At a guess, I would believe it would protect you from extremes of heat or cold, as well as most types of magical and physical attacks." She licked her lips. "And as a side effect, it's making me drool."

Ying Ying giggled. "That was one of Orihime's intentions when she designed it. Our dear Guardian designed all the Court Regalia for maximum sex appeal. You should see Ye-Ying's and mine, let alone Lin-Tzu's. The Empress found being a scandal amusing, and Orihime out did herself designing her dress. It had yards of material and barely covered anything." Ying-Ying shrugged. "What can I say, my darling soldier was rather deliciously _hentai_." She looked in the direction of the bath. "And speaking of my dear warrior, I think I should go and talk with her." She tapped her head. "It feels like she's fretting a bit."

Clove frowned. "Probably about me. I'm sorry I'm intruding on your reunion."

Ying-Ying waved her hand dismissively. "I seriously doubt that's an issue, Clove. Trust me. I can deal with this." She stood and took off her hat, her hair unbraiding as she headed towards the door. "So while I deal with her, why don't you two lovely birds get to know each other better. Just don't get started without us, 'kay?" She gave them a lascivious smile. "I have been waiting for years for this, so I would hate to miss any of it."

Clove rolled her eyes heavenwards. "Ying-Ying, you are such a tease!"

The Chinese ghost giggled as she slipped out the door. When Konatsu looked back down, her eyes had shifted to brown again. She looked over to Rei and blushed. "Um..." She scratched the back of her head. "Sorry. I feel kinda nervous without Ying-Ying here."

Rei smiled. "I know how you feel. I'm nervous without Ukyo." She sat on the bed and patted the spot next to her. "Why don't we just talk for now. Tell me a little about yourself."

Konatsu beamed. "Okay." She sat down. "Well. I am Konatsu Kenzen of the Sexy Kunoichi clan of ninja, and I am a _chunin_. I am currently employed by Clove as her host and protector while she is in hiding from the _Daimakaichou _Hild, and I am living with Ying-Ying at the Tendo's since my family home burned down and the death of my stepmother and stepsisters. I have been permitted to enter Furinkan High recently and have become the mascot for the Cheerleading squad under Ai-sempai."

Rei laughed. "Sounds like you've had an exciting time while we've been in the past. Last I knew, Clove was supposed to be an enemy, and Ai was Zhu Shu's biggest headache in school."

Konatsu's eyes shifted. "I was being deceived by Hild. Ying-Ying showed me how idiotically I was behaving." Clove said.

Rei nodded. "I know. Ying-Ying said you were like Zhu-Shu's sister, right?"

"Kind of. Like Zhu Shu, I am a Daughter of the Dragon, but where she is a reincarnation of Lin-Tzu, I am a mix of Lin-Tzu's blood, and a black dragon. While Legend has claimed me as his daughter, I suppose I should technically be considered her half-sister. Same father, different mother, in a manner of speaking."

"Well I can feel you on our bond, just like Konatsu. You really don't seem like the danger I remember being described."

Clove laughed. "I'm an evil black dragon archmage, the scourge of the Musk Dynasty and quite a villain, you know."

"Silly! You are not." Konatsu's voice said. "You never wanted to be anything but loved. I know."

"Hush dear. You're ruining the dramatic effect."

Rei giggled. "So you are really part dragon? I remember when Zhu Shu looked like you, though her hair was more gold than silver."

Clove nodded. "My mother was a Black Dragon, tamed by my father and turned into a human using the _Nyannichuan,_ then locked by the _Chisuitton_. Like her, I have a vile temper, and a tendency to go berserk. So please don't drop your guard around me completely. I really don't want to hurt you, but I can't trust myself when I am like that."

Rei put her finger on Clove's lips. "You won't hurt me. I can feel your fear, but don't be so worried."

"Well, I can't exactly leave Konatsu's body or even put myself to sleep. I feel like I'm intruding on your reunion."

Konatsu shook their head. "You are not. I welcomed you into my head and I don't mind you being present."

Rei smiled. "I don't think I really mind either, Clove. I mean, it's strange enough for me to be able to feel Konatsu and Ying-Ying in my head, and I've known for quite some time that Zhu Shu has more soul mates than just myself and Ukyo. Seriously, Lin-Tzu had many wives. I had already decided to be accepting of any new members of our harem, so while I'm kind of nervous, I am also kind of excited about the whole thing as well," she finished with a blush.

Konatsu leaned over and whispered in Rei's ear. "You know, she has such naughty memories. She knows so many ways to make a girl scream in pleasure."

Rei turned crimson. "Um... Um... I'm kinda a novice you know."

Konatsu giggled. "I'm a virgin personally. I've never had sex as a boy or a girl, so this is a completely new experience for me, other than all of Clove's memories. If she wasn't in my head, I'd probably be too embarrassed to even be in the same room with you. That gorgeous dress of yours would probably have given me a terminal nosebleed. And Ukyo's..." she fanned herself. "That, um - back - is so daring."

"Non-existent, you mean."

Konatsu giggled. "It makes me curious as to what my dress looks like. I wish I had memories of our past lives."

"Me too."

"It can be arranged, you know. The spell is not that difficult." Clove said. "All I need is a few herbs and enough space to make a circle. The bed is more than large enough to allow me to place one of the necessary size for you both. However, I'd really advise waiting right now. You'll be unconscious for a day or so as the spell is in effect, and under the circumstances I'm not sure how safe we are. Not to mention, it would interfere with the other plans I believe your soulmates have for their return."

Rei giggled. "True. But I do want to take you up on that offer. I'd give anything to be able to remember my former life."

Clove tapped her chin thoughtfully. "However, if you are willing to let me try a little experiment, I might be able to at least allow Konatsu to have a little something to surprise the others with when they return."

"Oh?"

"You are a priestess, yes?"

Rei blushed. "Um... well, about that. I am a shrine maiden, but I think I've come to believe I want to be a servant of the Dragon more than anything." She looked down at the floor. "My Grandfather has always said everyone has to find their own way, and I really think this is the path I've always been meant to follow. I know I'm a Senshi, but I'm just as much Lady Phoenix, and, well..." the Phoenix Wand appeared in her hand. "I think this means he's accepted me."

Clove nodded. "Well, what I want to do is have you pray to the Dragon for one very specific thing. My dress is created by magic, so it's completely morphable. If you and I pray to the Dragon together, and I invoke the spell to change my dress without giving it a specific pattern to form, I am hoping maybe that we can get him to shape my dress into Ye-Ying's Regalia."

"Will it work?"

Clove shrugged. "In theory, both you and Konatsu should have trace memories of it in your unconscious. Making a spell to find it specifically would take me hours though. I'm basically putting it in Legend's hands and asking a favor." She grinned sheepishly. "I am his daughter after all."

Rei laughed. "I'm game." She stood and held out her hands to the other girl. "I certainly want to see Ye-Ying's Regalia."

Konatsu's eyes shifted again as she took Rei's hands. "Ooh I hope this works. I bet it's such a sexy dress!"

Rei held her hands as she closed her eyes. _Umm, hi? I really don't know what the proper ceremonies are, but I'm Rei, and this is my first time praying to you. I hope you won't mind that I don't know how to do this properly, but I'd really like to be a proper priestess for you. I - I know you have allowed me to become one of your daughters loved ones, and, well... um... I am asking for a favor._

The butterfly at the back of her mind twitched as she felt a presence, one that seemed to be rather amused. Her whole body tingled as she felt energy flowing through her like a vast river and then an image formed in her mind of a glowing Dragon Mandala, just like the one floating behind her head.

_((DO YOU TRULY WISH TO BECOME MY PRIESTESS, REI HINO?))_

Rei swallowed hard _((Yes, my lord.))_

_((ARE YOU CERTAIN YOU ARE PREPARED FOR THE BURDEN IN ADDITION TO YOUR DUTIES AS A SENSHI? I WILL NOT RELEASE YOU FROM THOSE DUTIES JUST BECAUSE YOU CHOSE TO SERVE ME.))_

Rei thought back to the day she had received the Phoenix wand, and the realization she had had that day, _((I have already chosen to step into your hand, My Lord. I - I have no wish to be relieved of being a Senshi. I just want to serve you as your daughter's wife as well.))_

_((THEN I ACCEPT YOU, REI HINO. INDEED, I ACCEPTED YOU THE DAY YOU ADMITTED TO YOUR LOVE FOR MY DAUGHTER. I HAVE MERELY AWAITED YOUR WILLINGNESS TO ASK ME CONSCIOUSLY.)) _

_((I-I see.))_ She felt herself blush. _((I do love your daughter. C-can you do anything to help her?))_

_((I AM SORRY, REI HINO, BUT WHAT MUST HAPPEN WILL HAPPEN. ZHU SHU WILL AWAKEN WHEN SHE IS MEANT TO AWAKEN.))_

_((I see. I am sorry, My Lord.)) _She bowed her head. _((What is your will, My Lord?))_

There was the sound of a chuckle_. ((FIRST, I COMMAND YOU TO STOP CALLING ME 'MY LORD'. I PREFER LEGEND. IF YOU MUST, I WILL TOLERATE LEGEND-SAMA.))_

_((Y-yes, my lo- um... Legend-sama.))_

_((AND SECOND, AS MY PRIESTESS, I LAY BUT ONE DUTY UPON YOU.))_

Rei gulped. _((Anything, Legend-Sama.))_

The mandala flared into light and reformed into a pair of golden eyes. She could feel them piercing her to her very soul, and it was like a warm stream of water poured into her body and transformed her into pure light.

((BE YOURSELF, ALWAYS, REI HINO. I REQUIRE NO WORSHIP, NO CEREMONIES. SIMPLY BE TRUE TO YOURSELF AND YOUR CONVICTIONS. BE THE PERSON I KNOW YOU TO BE, AND THAT WILL BE ALL I REQUIRE OF YOU.))

There were no words she could say, all she could feel was ecstasy as the golden light filled her. She hung suspended for an eternity as her wings spread and she reveled in the sheer joy of the Dragon's Gaze. Then the light slowly faded as she felt her consciousness come into focus again. She looked into the Dragon's eyes and felt him smile.

_((AND YES. I GRANT YOUR AND MY DAUGHTERS FAVOR.))_

Her eyes opened to see Clove's emerald green eyes looking at her in wonder. "Wow. He actually visited in person?" She blinked, her eyes switching between green and brown with each one. "We- we were there with you. Both of us. We heard him talking to you. I heard him accept you as his priestess."

Rei nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! Isn't it wonderful?"

Konatsu's eyes returned as she threw herself forward into Rei's embrace. "It's awesome, Rei-chan! And I could feel how much he appreciated me allowing Clove to stay in my head! And I love how gorgeous your new eyes are!"

Rei blinked. "Huh? New eyes?"

Konatsu giggled. "Yes, they are such a pretty gold! Just like his!"

Rei found herself smiling. "Wow. He - he marked me too. I wonder what Ukyo and Zhu Shu will think?" Then she blinked. "Oh yeah, and he said he was granting the favor too!" She grabbed Konatsu by the shoulders and took a step back to look at her.

"Oh... wow," was all she could say.

0

Ukyo sat in the bath soaking up the heat as she thought about the events of the day. It was hard to believe that just that morning she had awoken in the Hasai mansion following a dream of Ying-Ying, and now, less than a day later, they had defeated Naraku, completed the quest to return the sword, and then gotten catapulted into the future, only to meet Ying-Ying in the flesh.

Not to mention Konatsu.

"What am I going to do? I'm not sure I'm ready for this. I barely managed to rescue Zhu Shu and I haven't even been able to tell her I love her in person. And now I have two other soulmates to deal with." She sighed. "What am I going to do?"

_((Do you mind if I join you?))_ Ying-Ying's mental voice asked softly in her head.

Ukyo closed her eyes. "Sure Ying-Ying. "

She turned as the door behind her slid open and the pink haired girl entered, her nude form teasingly half hidden in her long hair. "I could feel you fretting. I'm sorry. I can't really help that our link transmits our emotions to each other."

Ukyo shook her head. "It's okay. I have enough of Orihime's memories to be used to that. It's funny really. Her side of me knows without a single doubt that she loves you, but I really don't know you at all. In this life, we've only just met. Same with Konatsu. I can feel you both in my head, just like Rei and Zhu Shu. It's not that I don't love you. I can't really seem to help but love you. It's just so confusing."

Ying-Ying nodded as she settled into the water. "I suppose Clove isn't really helping things either."

Ukyo chuckled. "Actually, she doesn't bother me. I can feel her behind Konatsu." She shrugged. "I mean, she was right there when Konatsu was kissing me and..." she blushed. "Well, let's just say I don't really have a problem with her."

"And yet you were just fretting about us."

The chef sighed. "Yeah. Like I said, it's confusing. I mean, I've only been sleeping with Rei for a couple of days. And while that's been wonderful, I'm afraid of what is going to happen when I go back to the room." She blushed. "I'm kinda new to the whole sex thing you know."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Like any of us would be concerned about that. Truthfully, I've only had sex with Zhu Shu once. Konatsu and I haven't actually done anything yet because Clove's been worried about how you would feel about her. Right now, I'd probably say you and Rei have far more experience in this lifetime than we do." She curled up against Ukyo's arm, her breasts pressed against the other girl. "Though I must admit I am hoping to remedy that," she purred as she brought her face close to Ukyo's.

Ukyo kissed her nose. "Not in the bath. And don't ask me why, but it doesn't feel right to not include the others. I feel bad enough that Zhu Shu is still unconscious." She wiggled her arm loose and put it around the pink haired girl. "And it's more than just sex, Ying-Ying. It's just I feel... well." She tilted her head back to stare up at the ceiling. "I had a dream about you this morning, you know. Before all the other stuff that happened today. You came to me after I had stormed out of Lin-Tzu's bedchamber in a huff after catching the two of you in bed."

Ying-Ying blushed. "Oh my. Was it the day I demanded you give me your heart in exchange for mine?"

"Yes."

Ying-Ying giggled. "I _was_ being rather forward that day, Orihime-chan. But you needed me to be."

Ukyo nodded. "Yeah, I suppose I did. I suppose you have memories of our past together then?"

"Yes, beloved. I begged Legend to restore them. It's... kind of a double edged sword though. There was a lot of pain and heartbreak there at the end of things. I never knew what had happened to you until recently, and I still don't know what happened to Ye-Ying other than she died preventing us from being overtaken in the hidden passages. My last memories were of Lin cradling me in her arms as the ship fled the palace and crying. I couldn't even feel the arrow in my heart, just sadness that I had made her cry."

Ukyo tousled her hair. "It's okay, blossom. I'm sorry to stir up such terrible memories."

The ghost-girl closed her eyes as she sighed happily. "I love it when you call me blossom, my darling warrior."

"Did you enjoy being a soldiers wife?"

"Immensely." Ying-Ying opened her eyes to gaze into Ukyo's hazel ones. "And I am looking forward just as much to being the wife of a chef and a Senshi." She smiled as she tapped Ukyo's nose. "But I am jealous of the fact that you have once more tamed the Phoenix before I could."

Ukyo laughed. "Hardly, Blossom. She landed on my wrist of her own free choice. I just refused to let her go once she had." She smiled at the memory. "She was a terrible tease. She henshined the first time I kissed her, trying to show me what Zhu Shu's Chi Kiss would be like."

Before Ukyo could react, Ying-Ying's lips met hers and she melted as she felt the caress of burning ice flow through her soul. She gasped for breath following the orgasm, and looked into the laughing blue eyes of the ghost. "Okay, you mischievous imp, what the heck was that?"

"Me showing you what a true Chi Kiss is like." She fluttered her eyelashes. "So how did it compare to Rei's henshin?"

Ukyo laughed. "Not as energetic, but definitely a touch more orgasmic. She came surprisingly close."

"I'll have to get her to show me too."

"Yeah. Among other things." Ukyo rolled her head back again. "but..."

Ying-Ying rolled her head to the side curiously. "But?"

For several minutes Ukyo just stared at the ceiling as Ying-Ying waited patiently. Finally, she sighed. "I don't remember just you, Ying-Ying."

"Hummm?" the ghost-girl blinked.

"Did I... Did I ever tell you about when I learned the Dance of Shiva? Back when I was still Orihime?"

Ying-Ying bit her lip. "Ummm..." a worried look came into her eyes. "Well... no. You - you were very adamant that we not ask. But you changed afterwards. There was always a sadness in your eyes that you wouldn't share."

"I see." Ukyo's arm tightened around Ying-Ying. "I suppose I just couldn't bear to tell you back then. I'm sorry."

"Tell us what?"

Ukyo sighed deeply. "About Sarhia."

Ying-Ying's breath caught. "Sarhia? But - how would... I mean... she's Zhu Shu's..." She blinked. "I-I'm confused."

Ukyo lifted her free hand to rub her temples. "Sarhia is Shiva, Ying-Ying. Long before she taught Zhu Shu, I met her in the heart of Mount Phoenix. She's the Dark Goddess I went to see, armed only with the knowledge you found for me. And when I found her, I found something I did not expect."

"Sarhia is... Shiva?" Ying-Ying said in amazement. "Zhu Shu was taught by the goddess herself? But why didn't Legend tell me?"

Ukyo shrugged. "Probably for the same reason I didn't tell you about her back then. Because Sarhia asked me not to. She didn't want to burden you with the knowledge of her existence."

Ying-Ying blinked again. "But - but how would knowing she existed be a burden?"

"Because she belongs with us, Blossom. She's been waiting for us for two thousand years."

Ying-Ying stood up to lean over Ukyo and look into her eyes. "You mean... She's -she's our heart's mate as well?"

"Yes. And she's imprisoned. She's imprisoned in that damn mountain. Her 'penance' as she calls it. Her punishment for all her sins as a Lord of Chaos. And she's still waiting for me to come and free her."

"Yes, we have to free her! If she's our heart's mate we have to!"

"Yeah, and we will."

"But why would knowing about her have been a burden?" Ying-Ying asked again. "We could have freed her already!"

Ukyo shook her head as she sighed. "It wouldn't have been possible. The time wasn't right. We couldn't even save ourselves. The Empire of the Dragon was doomed to fall. That's what I couldn't tell you. I couldn't bear to tell you I knew we were all going to die." She lifted her arms to lace her fingers behind Ying-Ying's neck. "Can you forgive me for that, Ying-chan. Can you forgive me for hiding the truth, for hiding the fact that I knew we had to die so that we could be reunited again?"

"Huh? Of course I can my beloved. Oh you wonderful, silly fool. There's nothing to forgive."

"Yes, there is. She gave me a choice, Ying-Ying. She told me how she herself had set in motion the fall of the Empire, and how she had doomed us all to destruction. She told me how she had betrayed Chaos, destroyed the Old Kingdom, and engineered the destruction of the Silver Millennium. I knew what was going to happen, and I let it. I chose to let you die, Ying-Ying. I chose to let us all die instead of using that knowledge to fight fate."

Ying-Ying shook her head. "I am every bit as guilty of that as you, my love. At Legend's request, I delivered the assignment to Peorth that sent you all back in time. I did so knowing full well that it would change all of you. And I have many times taken various actions that I knew would guide events in one path or another. As Zhu Shu's guardian spirit, I have even watched your thoughts and looked through your eyes."

Ukyo gave her a small smile. "You share the butterfly in the back of my mind, even if I couldn't recognize that fact till now. I'm just glad that I got to meet you in the flesh as well as spirit form."

Ying-Ying smiled softly. "I wouldn't have discovered how to without Clove and Ai's help."

"Ai hummm? Remind me to thank her."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Be careful. I have the feeling she'd have no qualms about trying to bed you now that she's called off her feud with Zhu Shu."

Ukyo shrugged. "I don't recall any of us having issues with the occasional sweet. I seem to recall we both rather enjoyed Xianghua on many occasions."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Lady Phoenix's handmaiden? She was rather fun, wasn't she? And if I remember correctly, we both seduced Ye-Ying that first time."

Ukyo rolled her eyes. "She was a rather silly Nightingale. I mean, really, spending three months pretending to be a wandering performer because she couldn't bring herself to actually fulfill her contract on Lin. And those awful songs! Only the fact she was a siren kept me from laughing. And she thought she was doing so well at hiding the fact she was an assassin. She was quite put out when I finally asked her how long she was going to try and keep up the act." Ukyo giggled, then sighed. "And there comes yet another random memory fragment from good old Orihime."

"It was a rather amusing dance, no?" Ying-Ying smiled fondly. "She was so wonderfully shy every time we called her to sing. It was so much fun to whisper naughty things in her ear when I made her dance with me."

Ukyo hooked her foot around Ying-Ying's and pulled the pink haired girl down to sit in her lap. "You are up to your usual tricks aren't you, physician? Making me remember more of my past life to make me more comfortable around you and Konatsu."

Ying-Ying nodded. "Is it working, my darling soldier? I've rather missed being a warrior's wife you know."

Ukyo chuckled. "Have you now, my lovely flower. You know I collect priestesses, right?"

"Well, you already have a miko in your collection. Do you plan to add more?"

"Just a priestess of the Dragon."

Long eyelashes fluttered. "Anyone I know?"

"Well, she has these incredibly blue eyes, and this lovely pink hair."

"Sounds familiar."

"I should hope so." Ukyo's hand trailed down Ying-Ying's front and played with her curls. Ying-Ying sighed happily. "One question though, out of curiosity." Ukyo said as she looked down through the water.

"Yes?"

"How the hell do you have naturally pink hair?"

Ying-Ying giggled. "My grandmother was a _Kitsune_."

"In both lifetimes?"

Ying-Ying spread her hands. "What can I say? The Chronos mainframe tends to make reincarnations have similar genetic makeups." She giggled as she stood, letting the water teasingly run down her body. "Now, if I recall, we have two deliciously beautiful women waiting in our room, no?"

Ukyo stood and gave her a grin. "Why yes, yes we do."

Ying-Ying held out her hand. "Then shall we? I don't know about you, but Konatsu and Clove have been driving me absolutely insane with desire, and unlike you, I've haven't gotten to enjoy our lovely Phoenix for a millennium."

Ukyo took her hand. "Why physician, you sound as lusty as a soldier."

Ying-Ying smiled as her eyes twinkled mischievously. "Now what did I say? Oh yes." She fluttered her eyelashes at Ukyo. "Good thing I'm marrying one then, humm? Maybe she'll be able to think of all kinds of wild kinky things to satisfy my desires."

Ukyo gave her an evil grin. "I can think of a few."

"I know you can, my beloved. I made you prove it after all."

Ukyo laughed. "Many times."

They dried off quickly, and as Ukyo finished, her armor faded back into view. She looked down at it and frowned, wondering how she could get her regular clothes back. Then she smiled as the armor shimmered out of view again, replaced by the black and red outfit she had acquired at Sango's village.

"Ooooh" Ying-Ying cooed. "That is quite a sexy outfit as well, Uc-chan. Is that what you were wearing in the past?"

Ukyo nodded. "Yeah, and I kinda got used to it. The armor is nice and all, but I can't show off a bare ass all the time now, can I?"

"Awwww. You always did before."

"That was in the Court of the Dragon, sugar. While I can't claim to have any modesty anymore, I can at least take pity on the sensibilities of those around me and not be completely on display."

Ying-Ying smiled. "I suppose that's true. After all, I haven't worn my Regalia this lifetime either."

They stepped out of the bath, Ukyo pausing to look down at Kanna sitting before Zhu Shu's door. "She will be safe, little one. You don't have to stand guard." Ukyo said gently.

Kanna turned her empty eyes to her. "I wish to." she whispered.

"You should rest, honey." Ying-Ying replied as she knelt to be at Kanna's level. "I know it has been a very tiring day for all of us."

Kanna shook her head. "I do not sleep."

Ukyo smiled at her. "Very well, little one. I will share her guardianship with you tonight. Watch over her well."

Kanna gave a single nod and returned to staring impassively at the far wall.

Ying-Ying petted her on the head. "You are such a cute _Tsukumogami,_ Kanna-chan. I know you will do a good job of watching over Zhu Shu. You have a peaceful night, okay?" She tilted her head to look at the surface of Kanna's mirror, and a small cloth appeared in her hand. She reached out and gently polished a spot from it and smiled. "There you go dear. Come to me later and I'll give you a nice polish. You should look pretty for your onee-chan, no?"

Kanna blinked at her. Then nodded once.

_((Tsukyumogami?))_ Ukyo asked Ying-Ying over their link.

Ying-Ying's mental voice laughed merrily. _((She's a mirror in human form, dear. As I ghost, I am quite familiar with all the various species of youkai.))_

Ukyo smiled as she offered Ying-Ying a hand and pulled her back to her feet. They walked down the hallway to stand in front of the door to their room. Ying-Ying tightened her grip on Ukyo's hand. "You ready for a lovely night?"

Ukyo took a deep breath. "My heart is racing, my knees are shaking, and I'm so horny that just walking is driving me crazy. And I'm still terrified of opening that door."

"If you don't, I'll probably rape you right here in the hall, my dear warrior."

The chef mused. "loud sex in the hall or a foursome in a soft bed..." She looked over at Nabiki and Tao-Ching's room. "Knowing them, either way it's likely to end up a four-way, but I think I'd much rather stick to soulmates tonight."

Ying-Ying giggled and hit the door switch.

They stepped inside to find Rei standing in the center of the room, her eyes closed and her fiery wings spread slightly as she smiled at them.

"Did the two of you have a nice bath?" she asked merrily.

Ukyo blinked and looked around the room. "Um, yeah... So... um... where's Ko-chan?"

There was a giggle from behind Rei. She half turned. "Hush you. I'm first."

Ying-Ying leaned forward to look at Rei intently. "What have you two been up to? You were going to wait for us!"

Rei laughed. "We have. We just have a couple of little surprises for you."

Ukyo tilted her head as she crossed her arms. "Surprises? And why do you have your eyes closed?"

Rei laughed again, raising her hand to cover her mouth. "Well, that's part of the surprise."

"Okay."

Rei nodded. "Yup. We, um, had a visitor while you were in the bath, kinda."

"A visitor?"

More giggles came from behind Rei's back.

Ying-Ying was looking around the room with a raised eyebrow. "Hang on a minute. Since when has this room been sanctified?"

Rei grinned impishly. "Probably for about ten minutes or so?"

Ying- Ying's hands were glowing as a Dragon Mandala appeared faintly on the floor. She blinked in astonishment. "Legend has been here?"

"He kinda showed up when we prayed to him."

"So he's why you're keeping Ko-chan hidden?" Ukyo guessed.

Wild giggles erupted behind Rei's back. "Hurry up Rei-chan!" Konatsu called.

Rei stuck out her tongue over her shoulder. "Hush, I'll get to you in a second."

Ying-Ying was looking critically at Rei. "What did you pray about, my dear lovely miko?"

Rei opened her eyes to transfix them with her golden irises. Ying-Ying's breath caught.

"He's accepted you as his priestess too!" She exclaimed in happiness. "Oh how wonderful!"

Rei smiled as she blushed. "He did."

"Rei-chaaaaaaan!"

"Okay, okay. And now that my surprise has been revealed, we come to the other reason we were praying. May I present our lovely Lady Nightingale!" She stepped aside with a flourish of her wings to reveal the ninja girl.

Ying-Ying clapped her hands. "Your Regalia!"

Ukyo licked her lips as she drank in the sight before her. Konatsu was a vision in black and gold. She stood in a pair of thigh high boots, the stiletto heels coming to needle sharp points. Ornate golden shinguards covered their fronts, rising to an engraved circular knee guard topped by twin horns that curved like flames. The tops of the boots were encased in a wide circlet of gold that grasped her thighs tightly, the hilts of numerous kunai showing above them, black ribbons fluttering from their ring shaped pommels. A narrow V of black silk covered her pubis, rising to hug her hips, more kunai tucked under the taunt cloth on both sides. Two golden medallions were attached to the cloth at her hips, and a long skirt hung down from them, the bottom border of the skirt a heavy zig zagging band of gold that gave it the impression of the tips of feathers. Her mid-riff was bare, but another narrow band of skintight cloth made an x across her breast and shoulders. Another set of medallions were attached to the front of her shoulders, a cloak attached to them that hung down to her ankles, it's golden hem matching the skirt. Long gloves covered her arms, covered like her boots with guards on her lower arms, and a wide band sporting kunai at the tops. Her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, a narrow tube of leather raising it six inches or so behind her head, her chopstick stilettos piercing the tube and securing it, the black leather making a lovely contrast with her white hair. Konatsu let them get a long look at her front before she stuck out her tongue and twirled to let them see the back, revealing that her rear end was nearly as bare as Ukyo's, and that the top of the skirt hung down in the back to mid thigh, while her cloak was split to mid back and did little to conceal the strings making a y at the small of her back, a half dozen shuriken tucked under the upper strands. She looked over her shoulder impishly and stuck out her tongue as her hands rose to the medallions on her shoulders, and the cloak fell away into her hand, twisting around as it reshaped itself into a massive fuuma shuriken, revealing that the back of her top was also just an x of strings. Konatsu giggled. "Look, Ukyo. You made me even more revealing in back than you are!"

Ukyo blushed. "Oh gods, you know I designed the Regalia?"

Ying-Ying kissed her on the cheek. "Sorry my dear soldier. I am afraid I spilled the beans."

Ukyo facepalmed. "Orihime was such a hentai" she moaned.

Ying-Ying nodded. "Yup. And a most wonderful one."

Ukyo looked at the ceiling as she shimmered back into her armor. "Alright, then I might as well be proud of the fact." She turned to look at Ying-Ying. "Alright, your turn."

"Hummm?"

"Come on Ying-Ying, we're all in our Regalia, time for you to show yours."

"Nope."

"Whadda ya mean, 'nope'?"

Ying-Ying put on a smug grin. "You are just going to have to wait."

"Aww, that's not fair Ying-chan!" Konatsu pouted. "We made such an effort to be able to show you mine!"

Ying-Ying nodded. "Yes. Which is why I am not showing off mine tonight. I don't want to distract anyone from the effort you made to give us this wonderful surprise. Don't worry. You'll get to see it soon. How about I give you a consolation prize and show off your favorite outfit instead?"

Konatsu blinked. "My favorite outfit?"

Ying-Ying's dress poofed. "This one!"

Konatsu's eyes grew round "Ooooooh..."

Then Ying-Ying pounced the ninja girl and they both fell into the bed as Ukyo grinned and dimmed the lights. She bowed to Rei as her armor faded out of existence. "Well, my Lady Phoenix, shall we join them?"

Rei blinked her golden eyes as she reached up to unhook the chain on her breast plate, dropping it and her skirts to the floor. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

"There's still time to back out."

"Oh god's no." She caught Konatsu's glove as it flew by her and giggled. "We better hurry or she might not have any clothes left for us to take off."

Ukyo raced her for the bed.

0

_She glared down at her opponent as she gathered her chi, releasing the Talon and Fang to either side of her to float upright. They began to orbit her, leaving glowing copies of themselves around her as a forest of blades formed. Effortlessly, she called upon the ringing crystalline power within her, summoning dozens, then hundreds, until nearly a thousand blades surrounded her. Her eyes narrowed as she called out the attack._

_"Shiva's Dance Ultimate Attack, Dance at World End!"_

_The blades around her raced to strike Ukyo down..._

_"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

_The scene shifted, and she found herself floating in the courtyard of Mikado castle, the Talon and Fang piercing Rei's hands as she looked at her with golden eyes. A spray of blood spread from around the miko's hands, moving imperceptibly in the frozen moment._

_She tried to close her eyes in shame, only to find herself in another place._

_((If this is what you need, Zhu-Shu, then take me! Take me and come back to yourself!))__Ukyo cried in terror __((If you need me this badly, I won't fight you! Just please, come back to me!))_

_She sobbed, the pain inside her overwhelming._

_Blood rained down on her from the body of a young okami named Kouga as she cried. Then Naraku laughed as she felt the warm blood of a nameless girl splash across her face._

_"Let me disappear, let me disappear, let me disappear." she whispered between sobs. _

_"You suffer so beautifully." Naraku crooned..._

_"Just let me disappear," she pleaded._

_She hovered in darkness, filled beyond bearing with Light..._

_"Please... just let me disappear..."_

Her eyes opened to stare at an unfamiliar ceiling. Tears dripped from her eyes to fall onto her ears as she stared without really seeing. Her hand rose to press against her breast, feeling nothing.

_No heartbeat. _

Her eyes lowered to look at her hand as she raised it from her breast. She sighed, and lowered her hand as her eyes closed again.

_Why am I still here? Why can't I die?_

Noiseless sobs racked her body. For long moments, she cried before finally opening her eyes again. Listlessly, she looked around the room. Faint traceries of light crisscrossed everything.

_Cobwebs?_ She blinked, then waved her hand at them. They shattered into glowing motes and dissipated. She felt the tingle in her hand as they did so. _ No, spells. I wonder what they were for?_

She sat up slowly, with great effort, and shook her head, her earrings chiming softly. She looked down to see that she was dressed in a hospital gown of some sort. She grimaced and tore it away in disgust.

_Animals don't wear clothes._

There was nothing she could see around the room that could tell her where she was. Not that it really mattered. Her hand pressed against her breast again and she dug in her claws until they encountered a smooth hardness.

_So, the Shikon has become my heart._

She dug harder, moaning softly in agony, but try as she might she couldn't get a good enough grip on the jewel to rip it free. She finally gave up and sat crying as her body restored itself.

_Why can't I just disappear?_

Hours passed before she finally fluttered up off the bed and crossed the room to the door. She tried to figure it out for several minutes until she found the switch, and the door slid aside to reveal the pale form of Kanna.

They stared at each other for an eternity before Zhu-Shu spoke. "How is your sister?" she whispered.

"Alive." Kanna whispered back.

Zhu Shu nodded listlessly and stepped past her into the hall. More traceries of spells covered the walls. She didn't even bother to try and figure out what they were before waving her hand and dispelling them. She stood and looked down the hall, wandering where she should go.

Kanna took her hand. When Zhu Shu looked down, she started walking down the hall, leading her. At the farthest door she stopped and pointed.

The door opened noiselessly, the room beyond dark and quiet. Kanna stood to the side of the door as Zhu Shu entered.

It was a bedroom, and the air smelled strongly of passion. She felt an aura of peace and contentment, one echoing in the back of her mind as she realized her soul links were humming. Reluctantly she fluttered towards the bed as the door closed behind her.

There were more people than she had thought there would be. Then as her eyes adjusted to the darkness and she could see clearly, her throat choked off the sob.

_Ying-Ying..._

It was impossible, but her eyes couldn't deny the sight before them. Ying-Ying was whole, and physical, lying in the bed before her, her head resting on the thigh of another girl, her fingers curled in the other's white pubic hair. Ukyo lay curled next to the pink haired angel, her head resting on Ying-Ying's stomach, while Rei laid curled around the white haired girl's form on the opposite side.

But it was the white haired girl herself who filled Zhu Shu's soul with ice as she shook her head in denial.

_No, no, no, no, no, no, NO!_

She turned and fled, barely able to open the door before she blurred down the hall, leaving Kanna reaching out for her vanished form.

0

It was nearly dawn. A soft creak came from the chain above her as she slowly swung back and forth. She couldn't have even told anyone where she was or how she had gotten there, her mind was a blank from the moment she had recognized Clove entangled with her soulmates. It could have been hours since she had found this desolate playground and it's swing set.

_Why can't I disappear..._

She didn't even move as footsteps drew close, and a hand reached down to pat her on the head. Empty eyes rose to stare blankly into the dark eye sockets of a fine porcelain mask, two red streaks descending from it's eyes like the fangs of a tiger.

"Welcome, child. I have been waiting for you..."


	4. Chapter Three: Bonds

Chapter Three: Bonds 

"I don't see why you are so opposed to this, Father!"

"Ares, stop shouting. It's unseemly for a Princess." 

"I don't care, Father! I want to know why you are being so stubborn! You know that such an alliance would strengthen our position in the Federation, and possibly even help reverse some of the setbacks the solar system worlds have had in the Council! Our marriage would provide you numerous advantages politically!"

"Ares, you are asking me to approve your marriage to the Empress! Despite her position as ruler of the largest nation on Earth, she is hardly the most favored by the Council or the High King! Her court is a scandal! And now you are asking me to allow the Princess of Mars to add herself to her harem!

"Father! I will not tolerate you maligning Lin Tzu! I have spent a year in her court observing her, and there is not a single ruler left on earth who is as just or as noble as she is! Even the High King has fallen under Beryl's sway!" Ares flounced into a chair. "I know people are constantly spreading rumors about her, and that Imperial Court fashion raises eyebrows out here in the colonies, but she is nothing but the kindest, most caring ruler I have ever met!"

"Ares, your father and I are merely concerned for your wellbeing and happiness."

"Really Mother? Then why are you standing in the way of that happiness?" Ares shook her head, her long black hair lashing. "Don't you get it? For the first time in my life, I am happy! I've found someone and someplace where I can follow both my duty and my heart! Lin Tzu has given me a reason to be a princess as well as a warrior, a woman as well as a sword." She hung her head and sighed. "Mom, we're facing a very probable war with the Earth if things stay as they are. And we don't stand a chance. The Solar Federation simply doesn't have the forces needed to combat the High King. We're being painted as arrogant and wealthy colonies ignoring the needs of the homeworld. Even worse, as the other Earth nations grow increasingly intolerant of non-humans, the fact that we have a majority of them as our populace is being used against us." She rubbed her eyes. "My marriage to Lin Tzu will give us an unrestricted access point to Earth, and will let us help save the thousands of youkai refugees fleeing from the other nations. And those numbers could possibly help save us. "

Her father leaned back in his chair and propped his head on his arm. "I can see you've given this some uncharacteristic thought, Ares. I hardly expected you to be the one looking at the political side of things."

"Father, I know you objected to Serenity assigning me to The Court of the Dragon, but you've always trusted her wisdom. Why can't you trust in mine? Lin can be whimsical, and I know she seems erratic at times, but believe me, a lot of it is simply a show. She has so many enemies she has to constantly keep them off balance and unlike Queen Serenity, she doesn't have a gulf of space between her and them. She's doing everything she can to try and prevent this war, and save as many lives as she can, and she has to put up with stupid shit like your disapproval of her lifestyle. Half the rulers of the Federation have multiple wives, and just because she's a women, you condemn her for having a harem as well. It's idiotic! We're all facing the same enemy! Why do you even care? Why do you have to be against her and our love?"

Her father sighed as he rubbed his temples. "Ares, I understand the situation far better than you give me credit for. Forgive me. I had to be certain that you weren't following Princess Serenity's flighty romance with Endymion and acting on pure emotion. I know all too well how Lin Tzu wins hearts. She can't control herself, it's just how she is. It's both her greatest strength and her greatest weakness." He rubbed his eyes. "And I do care about your happiness. That's why I haven't told Lin Tzu's envoy that I accept your dowry yet. I had to make sure you weren't going to be trapped into a marriage out of misguided loyalty to me or because the Empress had bedazzled you. I know firsthand how hard it is to deny Lin Tzu anything she desires when she asks for it in person. That aura of hers is just impossible to fight."

Ares blinked. "Are- are you saying you already knew about this?"

Duke Mars nodded. "Her envoy came almost a month ago, along with your dowry. And she has refused to return with any answer other than a yes. That's why I recalled you to Mars. I will not allow you to be bullied into this just for the sake of political convenience. You are my daughter before you are my heir or my princess, Ares. I won't use you as a political pawn. There are other ways for Lin and I to make arrangements to shuttle the youkai away from harm without making it look like Lin is going against the High King."

"I- I see." A tentative smile came to her lips. "Does- does that mean you don't really object?"

"I wouldn't go that far, Ares. I would, of course, have preferred to have seen your children and spoiled them rotten. But I am certain your sisters will be all too happy to ensure the continuity of the Mars line. It's all I can do to keep boys out of their beds as it is. Phobos and Deimos are on the verge of driving me to drink. I had hoped you would set a good example for them, but alas, you've got far too much of me in you. I had a hard time becoming monogamous myself."

"Dear, you haven't been anything but a perfect gentleman in all the years we've been married." Lady Mars smiled. "Fortunately for you. I would have hated to have had to remove portions of your anatomy otherwise."

Ares stared at them wide eyed. "Mom!"

Her mother blinked at her calmly. "Yes dear?" she gave her a small smile. "It's just the promise I made him on our wedding day. After all, I did have to win him away from half the Solar Federations eligible young princesses."

The Duke cleared his throat. "Ah, anyway, if you truly desire this Ares, I will give my consent."

Ares nodded. "Yes father. It truly is what I desire, with all my heart."

He nodded. "I can't really object merely over the fact that you are both women, with both Ouranos and Poseidon already engaged to be wed. It would reflect poorly on our belief in acceptance of all." He covered his eyes. "I just really had hoped you'd end up being a bit more reserved. You were always the serious one of my offspring. I would have expected something like this from your sisters first. I shudder to think of what your Regalia is going to look like once Orihime get's you in her clutches. That woman's lack of modesty makes High Court fashion look positively tame."

Ares smiled fondly. "I am quite looking forward to seeing it myself. I've grown rather fond of my future wife's sense of style."

Her mother sighed as she gently shook her head. "If it makes you happy dear. Just please take pity on your poor mothers nerves and be a bit more properly dressed when you come visit. Your Senshi uniform is bad enough."

Ares chuckled. "Of course mother. I will always be Princess Mars when I am here. But please understand that I am just as much, and always will be, Lady Phoenix as well."

Her father stood and held out his arms for a hug. As he wrapped his arms around her, he said softly. "Just please never forget that to us, first, last and always, you are our beloved daughter Ares."

"I will never forget, Father."

She bowed as she left the royal quarters to return to her own, musing as she entered the garden between her parents wing and the wing opposite that housed her and her sisters rooms. She went to the gardens edge where a balcony afforded a stunning view of the capital, looking down the long slope of Olympus Mons wistfully. As beautiful as her home world was, with its rosey deserts and twin moons, she had grown accustomed to the rugged mountains that surrounded the Imperial Palace. She truly loved Mars, and it's people, and always would, but her heart could no longer let her stay bound to a single world.

A sparkle from the side caught her eyes and she looked over to the Royal docks to see a beautiful ship hovering at anchor. It was long and slender, it's prow shaped in the form of a dragon's head, and it's solar sails crafted to resemble wings. She smiled. Lin Tzu must have sent it as her "dowry", the design and luxurious fittings a dead giveaway as to who had commissioned it's construction. She hoped her parents would enjoy the luxurious looking yacht. Lin had obviously been thinking they could use it to visit her on Earth.

She thought back over the last year, and how comfortable she had become with Lin Tzu and the others since the night Orihime had come to her to apologize for the Empress. It was almost like a dream of happiness. While it was rare that all of them were at the Palace at the same time, there had almost always been one or another of her fiancées around when she desired company. Coming to Mars was one of the rare times she had felt lonely since then. She wondered which envoy Lin had sent to her father.

She nodded to the guards outside her quarters as she entered, surprised that Xianghua wasn't waiting for her. She called for her and heard a muffled noise coming from her bedchamber in response. She entered and was greeted by a sight that made her bury her face in her hand and shake her head.

"Well, at least I know who she sent as envoy."

She stepped up to the bed, and the naked cat-girl tied up spread eagled on it, her arms and legs tied to the four corner posts with a red ribbon, and another red ribbon serving as a gag, tied with a large bow, and smiled down at her handmaiden.

"I see you lost again."

Xianghua blushed as she tried to avoid Ares' eyes. Her ears drooped in embarrassment.

"Seriously. I'm starting to suspect you rather enjoy being tied up and played with. She does this to you every time you try to ambush her. I'm really starting to question that you are actually 'training' as a kunoichi."

Xianghua's blush grew deeper. She batted her eyes at Ares pleadingly, her ears perking up hopefully.

"It's no good asking me to untie you. You know she's left you as a present for me. It would be terribly rude of me to unwrap you before she gets back. I assume she had to answer Father's summons?"

The nude cat-girl sighed resignedly and nodded. 

Ares bounced down on the bed beside her. "She'll be very happy when she gets back then. He gave his consent. I am now officially betrothed."

What could have been a cheer came from behind the other girl's gag. Ares smiled happily. "I know, I am so happy, I don't have to hide anything anymore." She gave the cat-girl tied up on the bed a lascivious grin. "Which of course means I'm in a mood to celebrate, so having a present is a nice touch. But seriously, why don't you just come out and accept a concubinage? You certainly spend more than enough time in our beds."

Xianghua blushed again as she rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Are you still going on about how you're a servant of the house of Mars and only wish to serve me as my handmaiden?"

The other girl nodded.

Ares sighed. "Oh Xianghua, you've been my closest friend since childhood. You know I don't and never will think of you as just a servant."

Xianghua shrugged as well as she could considering she was tied spread eagled.

Ares giggled. Finally she reached over and grabbed the end of the ribbon sticking out of the bow. "Ye-Ying will just have to forgive me," she said as she tugged it, unraveling the gag.

"Thank you, Mistress."

"I'm still not going to untie the rest of you."

"As you will, Mistress. I live to serve."

"So tell me, are you _really_ trying to improve your combat skills by attacking Ye-Ying so often?"

"Of course." She bit her lip. "But I will at least admit that losing is a lot of fun too."

"Silly kitty."

"I am happy that your father consented. I was worried he would not. I know how dearly my mistress wishes to become one of the Empresses' wives. Seeing you so happy has filled my heart with joy."

"I was worried too. And he was resistant at first. We argued for a bit before he finally claimed he was simply trying to make sure this was what I wanted and not me being flighty or because Lin had enamored me. He had to bring up Serenity and Endymion, like I am anywhere near as brain-dead as the Moon princess." She tapped her head. "I love Serenity to death, but seriously, I sometimes think she has just air up here."

"Love can make fools of anyone, My Lady."

"I know. I just wish she had a little more common sense. I worry every time she sneaks down to Earth that she'll provide just the wrong excuse for the High King to assault the colonies."

She felt as Xianghua's tail gently patted her hand. "I believe in Queen Serenity and The Empress, My Lady. Surely they will be able to prevent war."

Ares nodded. "I hope so. I wish I shared your confidence."

"It is a servants job to have faith in her masters, as well as to be faithful."

A sultry voice singing a bawdy tune announced the return of the Royal Assassin from her parent's quarters, and Ares smiled as she heard Ye-Ying twirl the pair of Guards around for a few steps before she swept into the chambers. She was carrying a bottle of her father's best wine in one hand and three glasses in the other, while grinning manically.

"My wonderful Phoenix! Isn't it glorious! He agreed!"

"Yes!"

The bottle and glasses were deposited on a side table as Ye-ying drew off her cloak, then turned to see the amused look Ares was giving her. She stopped and blinked, blushing. "Um... you aren't mad at me for tying up your kitty-cat again are you?"

Ares giggled. "She's not upset, so why would I be? I was just smiling at the look of happiness on your face."

Ye-Ying blushed harder. "Of course I'm happy. I was really looking forward to seeing you again after so long, and having this happen on top of it just made it better!"

"Silly. Pour us drink and come over here and kiss me. I've missed you too. I'm so glad you turned out to be Lin's Envoy."

Ye-Ying nodded. "I asked Lin if she'd let me. I was already on tour to the outer planets, so coming to Mars was on my way home anyway. I never expected your father to be so stubborn as to call you back to Mars before answering."

Ares took the proffered cup and her kiss as she curled up against the head board, letting Ye-Ying have a seat on the bed too. "He said he wanted to make sure this was my desire and not just because Lin had seduced me." She sipped her wine then propped Xianghua's head up on her leg to let her take a drink too. "But I finally convinced him, so he has consented. Mom's apparently more worried that I dress properly when I visit."

Ye-Ying giggled. "They love you, my darling. They are simply showing that love the best they know how."

"I know."

"So will you be returning to Earth with me? I will be leaving in the morning to deliver the joyous news to Lin."

Ares sighed. "Sadly I have to report to Queen Serenity before I can return to the palace. She has called the Senshi together to try and talk some caution into the Princess. But we can travel to the Moon together." She smiled. "At least I will have a chance to tell Zeus, Hermes and Aphrodite before the rumor mill begins talking about my engagement."

Ye-Ying bounced on the bed in excitement. "So we get a whole month to spend together!"

"Yes. It will certainly be much less boring than the trip here was."

"I'm sorry, Mistress. I was striving to keep you entertained to the best of my abilities."

Ares scratched the cat-girls ears. "You did a lovely job, Xianghua. But being cooped up on a ship for a month with just the two of us was still wearing. I've missed my Nightingale's songs and stories."

Ye-Ying giggled. "And I've missed being pounced by my lovely firebird and a certain kitty who likes to chase songbirds." She stretched languorously and gave Ares a grin. "Speaking of which, I think it's time to unwrap your present, yes no?"

Ares shook her head and smiled mischievously. "Nope. That can wait till I've had my way with you first."

Xianghua chuckled. "Ayah, such a cruel mistress," she purred without the slightest hint of sincerity.

Laughter was her only answer, followed not long after by soft moans...

0

Rei awoke from her dreams to find herself being gently shaken. She opened to eyes to look into Ye-Ying's lovely brown ones, and blinked at the worry she saw there.

"Huh, Ye-Ying, what's wrong?" she asked sleepily, then blinked. "Why is your hair white, it was black just a second ago."

"Rei-chan, Zhu-Shu is missing!" Konatsu said, paying no attention to Rei's question.

Awareness returned in a rush, and she looked around the room, remembering she was in Crystal Tokyo, and not her rooms in the Palace of Mars. "What happened?"

Ying-Ying was wringing her hands. "I was an idiot. I was so happy to be reunited with all of you I didn't think about what Zhu-chan's been through lately. She woke up while we were sleeping, and Kanna brought her to the room."

"She's awake! That's wonderful! But why is she missing?"

Ying-Ying looked shame faced. "She doesn't know about all that's happened, Rei-chan. She doesn't know about me being able to leave the spirit realms, or about Clove and Konatsu! When she came in, she must have been shocked to see me in physical form, and in bed with all of you and Clove! As far as she knows, Clove is still trying to kill her! It must have seemed like a horrible nightmare!"

"Oh gods."

"Kanna saw her vanish and woke me. Ukyo is waking the others, we've got to find her!"

Rei closed her eyes, the mandala halo behind her head flaring back into existence as she tried to follow along her link to Zhu-Shu, but it was strange. It wasn't blocked anymore, but it became diffuse and indistinct. Other than knowing she was alive, she couldn't tell anything else about the dragon girl.

"I already tried that, Rei-Chan." Clove's voice said next to her. "And all my spells have been disrupted. Something just wiped them out of existence without a trace."

Ukyo came in. "The Palace AI has recorded a blur leaving the premises about ten minutes ago. She's out in the city somewhere. Holo Ami is summoning several squads of troops to search. Me, Tao-Ching, Ranma, and Tatewaki are going with them to search. The rest of you stay here in case we run into trouble. We'll need you to be available in a hurry and not scattered all over."

Rei stood in protest. "But I want to come with you!"

Ukyo nodded. "I know, love. But please stay here. Your powers make you look too much like a youkai, and the Senshi are too well known. The four of us are each accompanying a squad, and we'll keep you informed. We'll find her, I promise."

Clove was sitting on the bed, tears falling from her eyes. "This is all my fault. I knew I was going to cause nothing but problems!"

Ukyo shook her head. "It's all our faults, Clove-chan. We were so overjoyed at being reunited none of us thought about the possibility that Zhu-chan would wake up without us being able to explain things to her beforehand. None of us mind that you're riding along in Konatsu. Zhu-Shu has just been through a very bad experience, and doesn't know what is what right now. I'll find her, and fill her in. Everything will be alright."

"How can you know that! All she knows is I was revived to kill her! She doesn't know I won't hurt her!"

Ying-Ying patted her on her head. "No, Clove-chan, but we do. And once Zhu-Shu has had a chance to find out what all has happened, I know she will be overjoyed to meet you and Konatsu. She's always been wistful that she never had a sibling. She'll be so happy to have an onee-chan."

Clove sobbed. "A-a-and I want to be a good onee-chan! I never meant to hurt her!"

Konatsu's arms wrapped around herself as she tried to give Clove a hug. "You are a good onee-chan, Clove-chan. You're the best onee-chan I've ever had!"

"That doesn't count Ko-chan! Your step-sisters were awful! I'm hardly any better!"

Ukyo's hand reached out to cup Clove's jaw and she lifted the crying mage's face to look into her emerald green eyes. "If you can't have faith in yourself, Clove, have faith in me. I am her Guardian. I will find her, and keep her safe, both from her enemies and herself. I'll explain everything to her. It will be alright."

Clove sniffled. "H-h-ow can all of you not h-h-hate me! I'm such an awful person!"

Ukyo tapped her head. "There's a little butterfly fluttering in the back of my mind that proves otherwise." She leaned forward to kiss Clove on the forehead. "Now be patient and let me go get her. It won't do for her onee-chan to be sad the first time she gets to see her awake."

Clove sniffled some more and nodded her head. "I-I-I'l try."

"It'll work out. You'll see." Rei said quietly. "She's just lost and hurting. I know we can bring her back, no matter what." She put her arm around Clove. "Your being here, your circumstances, they aren't the cause of this. She has been Naraku's prisoner since we arrived in the Sengoku. He made her do some horrible things. Even though she is not ultimately responsible for what she was forced to do, she still has to cope with it. She needs us. Even you."

"I'm a spoiled brat and a vile tempered monster with more blood on her hands than I can bear! How can she need me! I was brought back to life precisely because I have been responsible for so much bloodshed and violence. Whether I've done any of that since my revival doesn't matter! All I do is hurt people, and now I've hurt her, and you, and ruined everything. I've turned what should have been a happy reunion into a utter disaster."

"I will not allow you to accept responsibility for that alone, Clove." Ying-Ying said firmly. "I know how her mind works better than anyone. This is far more my fault than yours. I should have let the three of you get to know each other while I stayed by her side just in case this happened. I let myself get caught up in the joy of the moment and-"

"Stop that Ying-Ying." Ukyo said softly. "It's no-one's exclusive fault. We just have to deal with it. I will find her, and we will fix this."

Ying-Ying nodded. Ukyo looked over the three morose girls sitting on the bed and sighed. "Come on guys. She's going to need us when I bring her back. She's going to need love and laughter, not more tears. Try to cheer up, please?"

They nodded in unison. Ukyo assayed a smile as she reached behind her back and grabbed a yin-yang emblem from her armor and tossed it to Rei. "That's a communicator. I'll stay in touch and let you know when I find her. I've given one to the others too, so it's linked to all the search groups. I know you all can contact me without it, but this way you can know what's going on with everyone. If we run into trouble, we're going to need backup ASAP. I'm not impressed with the odds if these soldiers are forced to fight someone like that Rubeus guy you told me about, that's why I've put one of our strongest general purpose fighters with each group. Shan-Pu is in charge of you guys if you're called in as backup, okay?"

Rei gave her a small smile. "In general mode I see." She gave her a salute. "Yes, commander."

Ukyo smiled and put her hands behind her back as she assumed a stance. "Alright then troops. Fall in to receive your kisses!"

The three naked girls stood before the bed in mock poses of attention, Konatsu still sniffling a little even though Clove had retreated to let her get her kiss. After Ukyo had made her way down the line, she stepped back in front of the ninja girl. "Uh-uh soldier. Front and center for yours too."

Konatsu blinked back to green eyes. "But-but-"

Ukyo's lips stopped her. "Get over it, Clove. You're part of our group. And considering the feelings for you I get from both Ying-Ying and Konatsu, that's going to be true even after you've got your own body back. I'm not about to deny any of my wives their happiness."

"But- but I'm a monster."

"Did you forget I'm a student of Furinkan too? I'm sorry I missed Ai's little speech, but it doesn't change the truth, sugar. We're all monsters here. I was a general for the largest nation on Earth during the Silver Millennium. Your body count can't even begin to rival mine. I've killed over a hundred humans in just the last week, by my own hands. I have more blood on my hands than you can ever know, including that of my own _soulmates_. I _am _a monster, Clove. I accept that. I'm a far worse monster than you can ever be. Compared to me, you're almost an innocent. I know you've killed. In anger, by accident, even in cold blood. But I condemned millions to death, Clove, including myself. I let the Silver Millennium fall, knowing I could have done something to save it, to stave off its ruin for a few years, possibly even a few centuries. I died knowing I had condemned everyone I loved to death, all to prevent a new age of Chaos from beginning. It's not a question of how I can accept you as a monster, Clove. Konatsu loves you. Ying-Ying does too. That's all I need to know to love you too. All you have to do is accept that fact."

Emerald green eyes blinked in wonder. "How- how-"

Ukyo's finger on her lips silenced her again. "I am the Dragon's Guardian. The warrior forged in the heat of his flames to protect his Daughter's Heart. That is both my duty, and my greatest joy, but it is also my heaviest sin. I am a monster created to slay other monsters, the bearer of the Dragon's Wrath. But I do not work for free Clove. For all things there is a price."

"A price?" Clove blinked in confusion. "I- I- don't understand."

"Don't you?" Ukyo smiled as she turned and walked to the door. She stopped at the threshold and her armor shimmered into her black silks. "Then I'll let you think about that for a bit while I go find Zhu-Shu, my dear Daughter of the Dragon."

The door slid shut with a whoosh as Clove staggered back to sit on the bed with a thump. "Wh-what did she mean? A price?"

Konatsu giggled, an odd sound coming from the distraught girl. The green eyed mage looked up in confusion at the smiles she was getting from both Rei and Ying-Ying.

"And that is why I love my dear warrior so very much." Ying-Ying said softly.

Rei sat on the bed and lay back, her arms stretched out above her. "Gods, how can she burn so ferociously?" she asked no-one in particular. "I'm supposed to be the firebird here."

Ying-Ying giggled as she sat down next to Clove and took her hand. "Congratulations, dear. You've just received the official stamp of approval."

Clove blinked. "Huh?"

"Didn't you hear her?"

Clove blinked repeatedly. "I am utterly confused here, Ying-Ying."

"All things for a price, my love. All things for a price."

Clove rubbed her remaining tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. "I don't understand," she said sadly.

"There's only one price the Dragon's Guardian has for defending the Daughter's Heart, Clove-chan. Only one payment she will accept, and she will not allow you to pay her anything less."

"Why am I getting the feeling that this is an inside joke that I am not sharing in?" Clove asked in a small voice.

Ying-Ying and Rei both giggled.

"Clove-chan is being silly." Konatsu giggled too. "She's overthinking things too much!"

"Even you Ko-chan?"

Ying-Ying cupped her face and kissed her. "A heart for a heart, my love. You are the Dragon's daughter too. She's demanding your heart. For now and forever. A heart in exchange for hers."

Clove blinked.

Ying-Ying sighed happily. "In other words, my dear mage, you've just been asked to join the harem permanently. Lin Tzu might have been the Empress, but Orihime was the final word on who became an official wife once she became the Guardian." She looked up thoughtfully. "Actually, 'asked' might be the wrong word. I think it's more along the lines of a royal edict. After all, it's not like we're going to let you refuse."

"Wai!" Konatsu cheered.

"But- but-" Clove protested.

Ying-Ying fluttered her eyelashes at her. "But what, dear? You're getting exactly what you wanted most. Me. I just come with a lot of extra benefits."

"But what about Zhu-Shu?"

Ying-Ying sighed as she looked at the floor. "She will be happy about it eventually, Clove. I know she will. She's just unaware of everything that's happened, and from what I've been told about what Naraku did to her... well, she's going to need us. All of us, including you. I need your experience as a mage, and as a specialist in compulsions and geases. I don't know what Naraku did to control her, or what might still remain in her head. I know even less about what the Shikon Jewel might be doing to her. That thing is pure raw _youki_ only barely held in check. I sensed countless souls inside of it, all of them hungry. Her own natural energies are beyond my ability to measure as she is now, and that thing could easily be used to take her over again. I am going to need your help to construct shields against that if we can't find a way to remove it and restore her heart."

Clove's hand tightened in hers. "I swear I will do everything in my power to do so, Ying-Ying. I will do anything to make up for what I tried to do, what Hild almost made me do. My life is yours to do with as you will."

"Oh no, my dear. I'm afraid your life is simply not going to be sufficient. I want you body and soul."

Clove gave her a small smile. "My soul is yours. I am afraid I have no body to give you though."

"You will. Once Ko-Chan gets the other half of hers back, I will drag you kicking and screaming back into the mortal plane."

"Even that is borrowed. I'm just a soul inhabiting a not quite dead shell."

"And I'm a ghost. Your point?"

"You're losing this one, Clove-chan!" Konatsu called.

Clove threw up her hands in defeat. "Ayaya, alright alright, I surrender." She looked over at Rei. "So what do you have to say about this?"

Rei's golden eyes smiled at her. "Me?" She got dreamy eyed as she stared at nothing. "You woke me from a dream of the day I got my father's consent to become Lin Tzu's bride myself. I don't remember anywhere near as much of the past as Ying-Ying and Ukyo do, but I know what it is to share Zhu-Shu's love. It took a lot for me to understand what it meant to share though. I was jealous. I had doubts. I had fears. Those are all gone now. I am who I am. Rei Hino, Princess Ares, Sailor Mars, and Lady Phoenix. But before all of those, I am a heart that is shared between us all." She reached out to take Clove's hand. "We are different parts, and different people, but we are one heart. You are welcome to our family."

"Like Legend himself, we are Unity." Ying-Ying said softly in Clove's ear as her arms wrapped around her. "Accept us, and realize you are loved."

Rei's arms wrapped around her from the other side as the tears began to fall again in a flood, this time for a far different reason...

0

Several hours later, a very frustrated Ukyo listened to the troop commander reporting that yet another section of the city had been searched. They had cleared the entire inhabited district and were now combing the ruins at the outskirts. The longer the search had continued, the more depressed she had gotten over the whole situation.

It had become obvious over the course of the search. There was almost nothing that they would be able to do to that could turn the tide here. There were fewer than a five thousand humans left on the entire planet, a planet which had become as lifeless and dry as the Mars of her time. There were no oceans, no plants, no animals. Even the soldiers held no hope. They knew they were merely waiting for the end. She had heard it in their voices, seen it in their eyes. Not even Chibi-Usa's return had changed that. It had already circulated around that the princess's "help" was some of the worst villains from the past that had lead to the current reality. Ukyo could see the fear in their eyes when they spoke to her, the distrust, and wondering when she was going to shed her human guise and feed on them.

"Squad five-one, we've sighted movement in a playground in zone A. Moving to investigate."

Ukyo's eyes turned to the commander as he acknowledged the call. "What's in that region?"

He consulted his holomap. "Looks like an old school district. The playground would be here, behind the elementary school. This Zone has been abandoned since the first assault. It's outside our defense perimeter."

Her HUD ran syncs until it linked up to the commanders display. She blinked when it gave her the coordinates. "That's Furinkan!"

The commander nodded. "Yes, the Furinkan educational district. It was one of the hardest hit zones during the first assault. Blackmoon seemed to want to erase it from existence."

Ukyo smacked her forehead with her palm. "God's I can be an idiot. That has to be her. With the dojo gone, where else would she head?" She looked up at the commander. "Tell your men to confirm her presence but under no circumstances move in. She doesn't know you, and she could slaughter the lot of you in a heartbeat if she's scared enough."

The commander blanched as he hurried to transmit her orders. Ukyo climbed into the aircar next to him. "Let's go." she told the driver. He looked to the commander, who waved him forward as he was issuing the command. Then the commander looked up with a grimace. "Squad five-one is not answering."

"Shit!" She opened her armor's comm link. "Everyone, we have a possible sighting in the Furinkan educational district. We've lost contact with the squad in the area. I'm heading in to investigate. I will try to contain her if she's still out of it."

"Roger," Tao-Ching's voice came back in her ear. "All squads converge on Furinkan. Ranma, Tatewaki, have your groups form a perimeter a thousand yards out. Make sure they know no-one is to cross that line but one of us. If Zhu-chan is under the Shikon's influence, they'll die."

"I have a lock on your location, Ukyo, and a teleportal gate constructed. I can send everyone to you the moment you give the word." Clove's voice came over the com.

"I'll keep you advised. Stay on standby."

"Yes. Bring my sister back."

The car skewed around a corner into a straight road in front of the ruined school, and Ukyo felt her heart sink. The bodies of the missing squad were scattered in pieces around the road, and a black shadow with wings became visible just at the edge of the lights as the driver slammed the aircar to a halt. Ukyo launched herself out of the car and into the illuminated space.

"Zhu-Shu, it's me, Ukyo. Don't be alarmed. I know you have to be confused right now, but please, I'm here to help," she said soothingly

"Awww, how sweet. If I were your dear Daughter of the Dragon, I no doubt would be overjoyed to hear those words. Pity for you I'm not."

The blood spattered woman who stepped into the light made Ukyo's eyes widen in surprise before they hardened. Like Zhu-Shu, she was a dragon-half, but that was the only similarity between them. She was naked but for blood and three large emerald plaques that hung around her neck, suspended on gold chains affixed to a spiked collar. Long green horns poked through the wild mass of emerald hair that hung down her back to her scaled tail. She stood boldly, inviting Ukyo to look at her nakedness as she licked blood from her long talons.

"I assume you are with these pitiful wretches? They interrupted me before I could finish securing my prize. No matter. I'll just kill you as well before I deliver her to Wiseman."

_Wrathseeker_ formed in her hand as Ukyo went on guard. "What have you done to her?"

"Done?" mocking laughter filled the night. "Nothing as yet. My master commanded be she be delivered unharmed. He said nothing whatsoever about harming any of the rest of you."

She blurred as Ukyo raised _Wrathseeker_, but she had misjudged the dragon-woman's target. The car crumpled from her impact as her hand shattered the windshield to penetrate the commanders chest. She gave Ukyo a wicked smile as she crouched on the destroyed wreck and pulled out his heart. "There, now. It's just the two of us." She leaned forwards onto all fours to reveal her tail, and the drivers head impaled upon it. "You look like you will put up more of a fight than that girl did. At least I certainly hope so. It was such a boring capture." She flicked her tail, the head flying off into the night.

Blue neon lit the night as her armor flared back into its true form. "You are going to pay for that."

They met in a clash in the middle of the carnage, Ukyo's staff whirling as she blocked the claws striking at her throat, her ribbons extending as they blocked the dragon-woman's tail. She was fast, far beyond the speed most humans would have been able to cope with, but she was nowhere near fast enough to penetrate Ukyo's guard. She realized it quickly as Ukyo's blade left cuts all over her that she barely managed to dodge enough to keep them from becoming fatal. She snarled as she withdrew out of Ukyo's effective range.

"You're better than I was told you would be." she snarled.

"Your intelligence is outdated. It's going to prove fatal." Ukyo smiled grimly.

The dragon-woman snarled. "Much as I would like to wipe that smile off your face and drink your blood, my master would be displeased were I to allow you to kill me, nor do I relish the thought of suffering a resurrection spell." She spat, her saliva sizzling against the ground as it ate its way into it. "You win this time, bitch. Next time I will kill you, when I am allowed to use my full strength."

Ukyo launched herself at the other woman, but she was too late, _Wrathseeker_ cutting through nothing but air as she faded in teleport. She screamed in frustration as her armor flared brilliantly, illuminating the darkness for yards in all directions.

And also revealed a black haired figure wrapped in chains just beyond where the dragon woman had first appeared.

In a flash she was kneeling beside the unconscious girl, blinking in surprise to see she had apparently reverted to her normal human form. Gone were the black scales, the dragonish features, even the golden earrings that had been attached to her ears. She looked as utterly human as she ever had in her uncursed form. The only differences Ukyo could see was the heavy collar around her throat, which was affixed to the chains that she had been secured in.

And she had a heart. All traces of the Shikon Jewel were gone. Her armor could detect no traces of it within her, or of any sort of the strange energies it had read within her before. Only the chain and the collar bore any magical energies, and her armor could not identify it. She tried to wake the sleeping girl, calling her name softly to no avail. By the time Tao-Ching, Ranma and Tatewaki arrived, she had unwrapped the chains from around the naked girl, but had found no way to remove it or the collar.

"Is she okay?" Ranma asked as she came running up.

Ukyo shook her head. "I don't know. Nothing here makes any sense. It's definitely her, right down to the DNA, but she's fully human again and I can't find any traces of all the power she had just a few hours ago. She's not even healing like she was, these cuts and scratches should have healed already!"

The air nearby shimmered as a portal opened and Ying-Ying stepped out. "I know you told us to stay put till you called, but it felt like you needed me."

Ukyo nodded. "Does that go both ways?"

"Yes."

She picked the unconscious Zhu-Shu up and carried her into the portal as Ying-Ying followed her, the ghost girl's hand going to Zhu-Shu's forehead as she extended her senses into her. Her expression grew just as puzzled.

"What's wrong?" Rei and Konatsu asked simultaneously as Ranma swept the chairs in front of the table to the side to let Ukyo put Zhu-Shu down.

Ying-Ying shook her head. "Nothing's wrong, she just sleeping deeply. I've broken the spell keeping her asleep. It's just, she's fully human, and her mind feels... wrong."

"Wrong?" Konatsu's eyes shifted to green as a faintly glowing circle of symbols formed around her hand and she placed her fingers on Zhu-Shu's forhead. The Chinese girl moaned softly. Clove frowned. "You are right. This is not the same mind I touched earlier, and yet at the same time, it is. What the hell is going on?"

Zhu-Shu's eyes snapped open, and as they focused on the girls standing over her, terror filled them. She tried to sit up and scoot back simultaneously, only to fall off the table. Ukyo caught her before she hit the floor and Zhu-Shu's eyes looked up into hers...

...Without the slightest hint of recognition in them.

"Are-are you m-m-m-m-y m-m-m-m-master?" she asked in a scared voice, and in Mandarin.

The silence that answered her was deafening.


	5. Chapter Four: Masters and Slaves

Chapter Four: Masters and Slaves

_Authors note. Warning. Sensitive readers might find parts of this chapter disturbing. It's meant to be._

The emerald dragon woman materialized on the landing platform with a growl. She lashed out at the dark haired girl who tried to approach her with a medical kit, blood splattering as she went flying. She ignored it as several other identical girls moved to tend to her. Just the sight of their faces made her want to scream at the moment.

She staggered to a wall and leaned on it, blood dripping from the numerous cuts she had received from Ukyo. What the hell had been up with that girl? Not only had she been using some strange weaponry, instead of the spatula she was supposed to have been welding, but she was far better than their intelligence had rated her. The same had been true of that damn dragon-girl, though catching her had been all too easy, curse it all. She raised her eyes to glare at the slave-girls and snarled again. Her claws itched as she fought the urge to slaughter the whole roomful. But fun as it would be, it wouldn't address the real cause of her anger, and her master would chastise her for breaking his toys.

Still, she had completed her mission, so she was certain to be allowed a reward. She took another look at the slaves and licked her lips, relishing the thought of asking for one to dine on. The imagined screams made her shiver in anticipation. They wouldn't be as delightful as Rubeus's had been, but she could take so much longer to enjoy herself.

Those thoughts gave her the energy to stand, and she lifted the hand she had struck the slave girl with, smiling as she licked her blood off her claws. It was so sweet, and promised of the delights that would come when she claimed her reward. She giggled as she felt at the cuts, their pain already lessened. Another hour or so, and they would be healed.

She left the entry bay, striding down the corridor to the teleportal to the command bridge while ignoring all the identical faces scurrying about their various tasks. As she entered the bridge, she looked out the main window, down at the barren surface of the Earth, and the small glimmer that marked Crystal Tokyo, nearly indistinguishable in the vast desert around it. Soon, the humans would be no-more, and they could proceed with their conquest of the past and erase this horrible timeline from existence.

"Welcome back, Emeraude," her masters voice came from the shadows at the back of the bridge. "Your mission went well, I trust?"

She knelt in front of his throne and looked up at him worshipfully. "Yes, master. The one called Ukyo was much stronger than anticipated, but I put up enough of a fight to make her believe she overcame me. The prototype has been delivered, and they believe for the moment she is the Dragon's Child."

Red eyes blinked at her from the shadows at the base of her master's throne and a throaty chuckle came from the indistinct figure. Emeraude ground her teeth silently at the intruder in her place at her master's feet.

"Very good, my pet." She felt her master's eyes upon her as a glint came from his eyesocket. His implacable mask betrayed nothing, but she could feel the pleased smile. "Now what reward shall we give you?"

She couldn't help herself as her eyes flicked to the nearest of the identical slave girls, then back to the red eyes mocking her from shadows next to the throne. Her master chuckled.

"But of course, my pet. You must be hungry." He motioned to one of the slaves, who obediently came to stand before Emeraude. "Entertain us, my pet."

Her breath caught as she looked at the nude slave girl. She swallowed hard. Was he reading her mind?

Nervously, she stood and leaned down to kiss the short slave girl, who looked up at her with trusting emerald green eyes, completely oblivious to what was about to happen to her. She closed her eyes as the intoxicating scent of honey and cinnamon invaded her nostrils and made her salivate. Her eyes opened again to look into those bottomless green eyes, then downwards to look at her buxom figure, her alabaster skin, the generous breasts. They rose and fell as the girl panted softly in anticipation, her nipples already growing erect. Emeraude licked her lips before her eyes rose to the black figure watching her with amusement from the cushion where she had once lounged. Those red eyes chilled her. Despite her form, nothing human lived behind those eyes. Only the cold pitiless heart of a predator.

But her master was watching her as well. He was waiting for her to enjoy her well earned reward. To watch her as she showed him her appreciation of his generosity. He would be disappointed in her if she did not play with her treat properly before devouring her. She put the interloper from her mind as she closed her eyes once more and leaned forward to kiss the slave girl again, allowing her scent to drive everything but lust from her mind...

0

The girl huddled in the farthest reach of the huge bed as the others looked on.

"What's wrong with her?" Ranma whispered gently to Ying-Ying.

The ghost girl shook her head. "I don't know. She's been completely shielded, and she's too terrified to let us examine her thoroughly."

"Can you fix her?" Akane asked worriedly.

"I don't know."

Tao-Ching put his arm across the door and gently pushed the crowd back. "Guys, I know we are all worried. But look at her. We're scaring her to death. Back off and let the professionals work."

Ukyo looked at them pleadingly from where she had chosen to guard the door with Kanna as it slid closed, leaving only Clove, Ying-Ying and Rei in the room. Clove sighed. "Professionals, yeah right," she said morosely. She looked to the other two girls. "I guess that means me. Let me try first."

She moved slowly to the bed. The girl's eyes focused on her in fear. Clove held up her hands soothingly. "It's okay. I won't hurt you. See? No weapons," she said in Mandarin. She closed her eyes for a second as her black dress shimmered and poofed. "None at all, okay?" she said as she stood naked and slowly turned. "See? I have nothing I can hurt you with. I just want to set on the end of the bed and talk to you, okay?"

The girl nodded nervously, her head moving too rapidly in her fear. Clove slowly sat down, doing her best to make no threatening moves. The chain coming from the girl's collar clinked as it shifted, sliding down the slope created by her weight to touch her hand. The girl shivered. "Are- are- are y-y-y-ou, m- my m- m- master?" she asked, her voice almost pleading.

Clove shook her head. She winced as the girl started to cry. "Don't- um..." she started to say, then realized what she had done wrong. She sighed in despair. "May all the gods that exist damn him," she whispered in Japanese.

"Clove?"

She held up a hand to the two other girls. "Stay there. And I apologize for this in advance, but please, I beg of you, trust me." she said miserably.

"But-

"I know how his mind works. I know what's got to be done. Curse him, but I know what has to be done." Tears streamed down her face. "If we're to have any hope of getting her to trust us, trust me. Please."

Rei put her hand on Ying-Ying's shoulder to keep her from moving forward. "It's alright, Clove. I think I know what you're planning."

"I'm sorry, please forgive me."

"W-would you rather I did it, Clove?" Ying-Ying asked softly.

"Could you, Ying-Ying? Could you actually make yourself do it? You know what will happen."

Ying-Ying bit her lip "I- I- " She looked away.

"You can't. And I won't let you try, my flower. I can't bear to let this sin be on your conscience. I have so many sins already. One more doesn't matter."

"We all have our sins, Clove." Rei said gently. "Just... just get it over with. We can't start figuring out what's wrong with her until she lets us get near her."

"Or even if it is her." Clove turned back to the girl, who had curled into a ball clutching a pillow as she had stared in incomprehension at the other girls. It was obvious she hadn't understood a word, and her wide green eyes held fear... and a desperate longing that broke Clove's heart.

Too many times. She had seen that look too many times. Shame burned deep inside her. _How could I have ever have thought that this was the look of love? How could I have inflicted this misery on so many innocents? I've destroyed so many girls. So many hearts yearning for love that I twisted into this same awful parody. How can anyone forgive me when I cannot forgive myself?_

She felt as Konatsu wrapped her mental arms around her. _We all make mistakes, Clove-chan. _

_Mistakes? I've stolen the hearts and wills of I don't know how many people, used my magic to take away their ability to do anything other than serve me. Just like Xi'an Chi has done to her. She looks like Zhu-Shu, but even if she is, she isn't. What makes her a person has been stolen from her. We need to find out more, and the only choice Xi'an Chi has given us is going to force me to perpetuate the crime. To someone who could be my sister... to... to my- my-_

_And that is why it will be okay. Because she is your soulmate. Because we are her soulmates. We cannot trust responsibility for her very soul to anyone else if she is Zhu-Shu. _

_And if she is not? What then Ko-chan? I will still be guilty of stealing her will, of shackling her unwillingly to my beck and call. I will be stealing away from her everything that she is, just as I tried to do to you._

_It cannot be helped Clove. All you can do for now is to be the kindest and most caring master she could ever hope to have. To protect her from all harm as I have vowed to protect you. Be the kind of master I have desired to serve for my entire life as a Kunoichi. For her sake. _

The girl was still looking at her, tears in the corners of her eyes as they lay locked on the hand touching her chain. As Clove's fingers lifted to cover the chain, that longing turned into a desperate hope. Her fearful eyes rose to look at Clove's again.

"Are- are y-y-y-you m-m-m-m-y M- m- master?"

Clove's hand closed around the chain, her tears falling on the cold metal as she gripped it tightly, feeling tendrils of energy swirling between it and her hand. The spell was complex beyond anything she had ever felt before, layer upon layer of enchantments making a web too tangled for her to sort out without days, maybe even months of study. But it was still recognizable as what it was - a slave contract. A magical deed of possession.

((Are you my master?)) it whispered.

She looked into those emerald eyes. Eyes the same color as her own. The eyes of Legend's daughters. Could he forgive her for this if she was truly Zhu Shu. Could he forgive her for this violation of her sister's soul?

((Are you my master?)) the spell demanded. The chain seemed to vibrate in her hand as if it were eagerly anticipating her answer.

There would be no going back.

"Are you my master?" the girl whispered, the faintest of echoes of hope in her voice.

"I will gut you for this Xi'an Chi." Clove promised.

"Are you my master?" her voice was a plea.

"Yes. I am your master." Clove said in Mandarin through clenched teeth.

The chain glowed as the spell responded to her words, and the girl's eyes went blank. Mystical circles swirled and died in them as she smiled. Then they refocused on her, and the happiness in them broke her heart. She threw herself across the bed to hug Clove enthusiastically. "Master!"

Clove's hand glowed as she placed it on the back of the girl's head. She closed her eyes as she felt the girl's mind open itself to her, the magical barriers that had enveloped her earlier and made her impossible to read recognizing her and allowing passage. The other two girls looked on with held breath as Clove probed deeper and deeper before she finally opened her eyes and let out a sigh that contained as much relief as it did worry.

"Thank all the gods. It's not her." She shuddered. "It's not Zhu-Shu. She's a clone, whatever that is." She held the girl tightly. "Her name is Mu-Sān." Tears streamed from her eyes. "Damn him to all the hells. He's made another one," she sobbed.

Ying-Ying's breath caught. "Mu two?"

Clove nodded. "She's a copy of this universes Zhu-Shu, but I can't feel the Dragon's Blood in her."

Rei's wings flared, crackling. "Then that means Blackmoon has our Zhu-Shu," she growled.

Clove nodded, looking down at the now smiling girl. "She doesn't know anything. She's got no memories before the moment she woke up out on the table. She's little more than a doll created to be a slave. She doesn't even know how to talk beyond that one phrase, though she can understand Mandarin, and is apparently programmed with basic knowledge of her duties as a servant." Her hand clenched, purple lightning crawling around it. "How- how does he keep surviving to continue these ATROCITIES!"

The door slid aside at her scream to reveal Ukyo, her armor blazing and _Wrathseeker_ at the ready. Mu let out a scared noise and hid behind Clove, peeking out in terror at Ukyo.

"What's going on!" Ukyo demanded, the door behind her filling up with equally curious faces.

"Blackmoon has Zhu-Shu. We've been had." Rei said, wisps of flame swirling around her hands as her eyes blazed. "That bastard Xi'an Chi is playing with us!"

"Huh? Then who is that!" Ukyo pointed to Mu, who ducked completely behind Clove with a squeak.

"She's a decoy." Clove said bitterly. "No, not even that. She's a cruel joke. A game he set up to torment us. He must have already had Zhu-Shu long before you ran into that other dragon-girl. He gave her to us just to force one of us to have to bind her as a slave, knowing it would be the only way we could discover that she's not Zhu-Shu. I had to complete her contract in order to unlock the magical barriers sealing her mind." She lowered her head in shame. "He's forced me to become a slave master again. Forced me to bind another girl as a possession."

Ukyo's eyes hardened. She cursed as she stuck _Wrathseeker_ into the floor and strode across to the bed. Clove flinched, expecting the worst, knowing she deserved it, but the blow she was expecting didn't fall. After several seconds she looked up to see Ukyo holding out her hand.

"How do you bind her?" Ukyo asked angrily.

Clove blinked. "Huh?"

"Goddamn it Clove, I can feel how much you're hurting! I'm not going to let you bear it alone!"

"But- but-"

Ukyo's hand reached down to grab the chain still clenched in Clove's hand. "This is my fault. I let them fool me. I won't let you take the punishment I deserve! Now tell me how contract her too!"

Clove shook her head. "No." She gently removed the chain from Ukyo's hand. "It wouldn't work even if I did. It's already encoded." She laughed bitterly. "Gods, what a horrible joke. Once, all I dreamed of was having Mu as my pet. To revenge myself on her stealing Shi away from me." She reached over to pet Mu's head. "It's okay, little one," she said in Mandarin. "Look at everyone here. I want you to understand that these are my friends, and they will all take care of you. You don't have to be afraid."

Mu peeked under her arm up at Ukyo. "F- f- f- friend?"

Ukyo closed her eyes and seemed to deflate. She opened her eyes again and looked down at the scared girl in pity. She gently held out her hand. "I'm afraid I don't speak Chinese, but please don't be afraid of me. I'll take care of you. And I'll find some way to free you from whatever spells are binding you."

"I- i- if she's not Zhu-Shu, who is she?" Akane asked from the door.

Clove sighed. "Her name is Mu-Sān. Mu number two. For all practical purposes, she's a doll. A doll created by Xi'an Chi from the Zhu-Shu who once existed in this world. Like the Mu I once knew, she's a copy of the Dragon's Child." She shook her head as the chain in her hand shimmered and suddenly shrank to just a few links dangling below Mu's collar. "A failed copy. Her body is an exact duplicate, but the Dragon's Blood is not in her."

"I- i- is she human?" Usagi asked.

"Yes. She has almost no free will to speak of because of the spells on her, but once I've figured out how to remove them, she'll be as human as any of you. Just, please, be kind to her. As far as she is aware, her life started the second she woke up on the table in the dining room. She can't help what she is, or what has been done to her. Now that she has a master, she'll calm down and not be so terrified." Clove finished sadly.

Ying-Ying wrapped her arms around her. "I'm so sorry Clove."

Mu was happily smiling as Ukyo petted her head. Clove smiled sadly. "It's okay, Ying-Ying. I promise I will take much better care of this Mu than I did the last one. I owe her that for my foolishness."

Tao-Ching cleared his throat. "Good. Now that that is settled, I have to ask the nasty question. Is she a boobytrap?"

Clove shook her head. "I couldn't find any compulsions or hidden commands in her head. She's harmless. It's that collar that worries me. I can't make heads or tails of the spells on it yet. They are too sophisticated. As much as it pains me to say it, don't let down your guard yet. She's as innocent as a newborn kitten and as devoid of any sense of right and wrong as one too. If the collar has any traps in it, there's no telling what they might be. For all I know, Xi'an Chi might be listening to every word-"

0

"-we say right now."

The masked figure laughed softly. "How clever, Clove of the Musk. It's so amusing to see you again after so long. I did not expect for Hild to bring you back, but I see you are still as sharp as ever."

He looked down to where Emeraude was finishing her meal and beckoned her closer. She crawled over on all fours, tracking blood across the deck as she came to crouch by his throne to be petted. She looked gloatingly at the shadowy figure on the opposite side of the throne. Xi'an Chi chuckled. "Careful, my pet. My new toy is not fully tamed yet. I don't wish you two to scrap like dogs."

Emeraude pouted briefly, then tilted her head to look up worshipfully. "Did I please you, my master?"

"Quite. You put on a beautiful show, my pet."

"Thank you, my master."

Red eyes glared at her as a hiss could be heard. Emeraude smiled viciously.

"Ssssssssso why do you watch? I want to kill them. I want to ssssssssspill their blood."

"It amuses me, child. Take poor Clove there. So penitent. So tormented by her past. Look what love has made of her. She used to be such a strong willed and wayward little toy. So eager to take whatever she wanted. She made such a fun little game piece until she tried to bite her master in order to save her precious Weapon's Master. That fool Hild put a broken toy back on the playing field in her anger over losing her daughter's lover as a pawn."

The red eyed figure hissed. Xi'an Chi's expressionless mask turned down to her. "Still, I suppose I should thank her. After all, her foolishness delivered you right into my hands, no?"

A flicker of red cut through the image of Clove floating before the throne, followed by a hiss of frustration.

"Patience, little one. She will taste so much better once she has been properly prepared. Their feast of despair is but just begun. Now, we let them hope, let them believe that they have the slimmest of chances to win, before we make our next move."

"Sssssssssuch a bother. Why wait? Sssssssssspill them now." Red eyes looked at him questioningly. "Why thessssssssssse gamessssss?"

"Curious are we?" He chuckled. "Dragons and kittens. Always too curious." He petted her head. "Still, you might as well know." He pointed at the hologram, "Like your former friends, I am from your universe. My Mistress Chaos sent me here, to replace the pale shadow of myself this universe's Xi'an Chi had become." He waved at the slave girls cleaning the blood of their sister off the floor before the throne. "Behold, the fruits of a thousand years of futility and impotent rage. My doppelganger was a fool. He allowed his place as Chaos's favored to be usurped by a silly Vampiress and lost Clan Scorpion to Fairy Tale. He spent a thousand years experimenting with your doppelgangers in a futile effort to regain the power he had wasted. But I do have to thank him for one the thing he succeeding in doing." He cupped the dark figure's face. "He discovered the secret to unlocking your true power."

The black dragon-girl blinked at him. "Sssssssssecret?"

"Despair. Misery. Suffering. Look at that silly bitch Clove. Once she was an outstanding weapon. Like a true dragon, she took what she desired, and added it to her hoard. Now, she has 'happiness' and 'love'. She's become a pathetic weakling who let herself be shackled to what she knows is a trap, even if she can't yet deduce what the trap is. With little more than a nudge, she's already violated the precious 'morals' she is trying to force herself to conform to in her effort to obtain her 'soulmate's' approval."

"Ssssssssssssssssoulmates!" the dragon-girl hissed derisively. "Betrayersssssssssssss." Her tail lashed agitatedly.

"Precisely, my pet. And that is why I have devised my 'games'. I will make them suffer for your pleasure. I will make them experience all the despair you could ever desire them to feel. I will lead them through hell in order to unlock your ultimate power. The more they despair, the stronger you will grow."

The black dragon girl purred in pleasure while Emeraude hid a smile behind her hand.

_Enjoy sitting in my spot for what little time you shall have it, bitch. Once my master has empowered you, he will take that power from you. And then I won't have to pretend one of your mindless little clones is you when I am stripping your flesh from your bones!_

Xi'an Chi's eye glittered at the purring dragoness. "Does the thought please you so, Zhu-Shu?"

The other dragon girl recoiled. "No! Not Zhu-Sssssssssshu!" She spat a fire ball to burn on the floor.

"Then what should I call you, my sweet?"

Sharp teeth gleamed in the darkness. "I am a black dragon. You may call me Sssssssssshadow. hizzzzzzzzzz..."

0

Ai blinked when Lo-Shen barged into the cheerleader's locker room, followed by two cats. The other girls paused in their warm-up to look at the lavender haired mage in surprise.

"Oh, um, hey Lo-Shen, what's up?"

"We need to talk Miss Konjou."

The white furred cat sighed. "Are you really sure this is the best course, Archmage?"

All five girls blinked simultaneously.

Lo-Shen looked at the cat impatiently. "Best course, no. Best currently available option? Yes." She looked back up. "Okay girls, gather round. And yes, the cats talk. And no, they are not bakeneko."

The cheerleaders looked at one another, then shrugged before sitting down on the benches in front of the Amazon elder. "So what's this about, Lo-Shen?" Ai asked.

Lo-Shen crossed her arms. "You're being recruited to pretend to be the senshi."

"Say what?" Ai managed in a strangled voice.

"I said, you are going to pretend to be the senshi. Apparently, they are in the future along with Ranma, Akane and Shan-Pu, as well as Konatsu, Ying-Ying, and the other five who went missing at the Club opening. I know you know that Akane and Zhu Shu were teaching them martial arts. Yesterday, I found two unconscious Blackmoon sisters tied up in the dojo and the remains of a gate after I went to investigate a massive energy surge above Tokyo. Between what I managed to find out from these two and Urd and Mara, apparently they defeated the person behind that cat girl who blew up the gym, but got stuck in a wormhole to the future. What that means is that right now, almost all of Tokyo's more formidable defenders are AWOL. If Blackmoon attacks again, there's just me and two kitties to stop them, because Urd isn't allowed to interfere in the mortal realm outside of the limits of her assignment, and Ke-Lun is tied up defending the village. So congratulations, girls. You're it."

Ai blinked. "So, basically, we are going to be turned into a magical girl combat squad whether we want to or not?"

There was a knock on the door. "Um, Lo-Shen-sama? We came as you requested." Kodachi's voice came through the door.

Lo-Shen grinned. "Not just you."

She opened the door to let Kodachi and Mousse into the room, motioning them to set down.

"Alright girls. Down to business. Kodachi, Mousse, The cheerleaders. Cheerleaders, Kodachi and Mousse. make kissy faces later. I've brought you all together because combined, you might equal the Senshi. Me and the kitties are going to be your tactical advisors, and I'll help with support magic. I can hit a lot harder as artillery than I can as a frontliner. Mousse, Kaede, you're aerial support. Kodachi, Kyoko, you are going to be our mobile light assault - hit and run. Ai, Megumi, you are both mainline defense. And Ayeka-"

"Tank, right?" The vampiress smiled. "I've played my share of MMO's"

Lo-Shen smiled. "You've got at least a hundred times the hitpoints of anyone else here."

"So long as I get fed before we fight, I've got a hundred times that."

"But still, you're asking us to fight Youma." Ai interjected. "I mean, I know we're all skilled fighters, and everyone but me is a youkai, but do you really think we're going to be able to slug it out with Youma?"

Lo-Shen smiled. "As you are right now, dear? No. But I am an Unlimited Class Archmage. I will be forming magical contracts with all of you, which will enable you all to draw on my magical power to grant you each a unique set of abilities and weapons."

Kyoko clapped her hands. "You mean a Pactio? Like in Negima!"

Lo-Shen raised an eyebrow. "Not quite, but you get the gist. It's actually a familiar contract. I'm going to make you all my familiars."

Kaede giggled. "Oh my. My mom used to be a mage's familiar when she was much younger. She always brags about how great the sex was."

Lo-Shen rolled her eyes. "Succubi." She sighed. "Anyway, by making you a familiar, I will be forming a magical contract that empowers you to be what basically amounts to my own small magical army. Seven of you is pretty much the limit of how many I can link to without creating compacts that are far more binding than I will allow any of you to form. I'm using you as a temporary defense force, not binding your souls for eternity as my slaves."

"Thank goodness for small favors."

Lo-Shen gave Ai an amused glance. "I still have my fur-lined handcuffs you know."

Ai wrapped her arms around Ayeka and Kaede, the two closest to her. "Too bad. You missed your chance, you naughty rabbit-girl. I am quite thoroughly possessed already." She tilted her head thoughtfully. "Of course, you might make a nice dessert some night."

Ayeka giggled. "Only if you share. No more keeping treats to yourself."

Ai kissed her. "Of course, my love. I promised I wouldn't do anything to make you feel neglected again."

Megumi raised her hand as she smiled at the other two. "So, um, what exactly does becoming a familiar involve?"

Lo-Shen rubbed her hands together and cracked her knuckles. "A magic spell, a drop each of your blood, and some space for me to draw the circle. You got some chalk?"

0

In another part of Tokyo, the sound of a hum filled an empty warehouse. Small crackles of lightning began to form around an odd swirl appearing in mid air. They grew stronger as the swirl became a vortex, and then opened into a gate. As it stabilized, a buxom, naked, black haired figure stepped through, then was followed by nearly a dozen more identical figures. They carried various boxes, or rolled carts carrying pieces of heavy equipment. Within just a few minutes, they had unpacked and set up a complex looking device that surrounded the hole in the air. As the final piece was assembled, most of them stepped back as one of the duplicates activated what appeared to be a power supply. The gate stopped swirling and stabilized into a transparent window, showing what seemed to be a sophisticated complex on the far side. The group of doppelgangers re-entered the gate as more came through, dragging heavy cables, and more carts of equipment. Soon, the warehouse was swarming with the identical girls, busily assembling a massively complex device. One of them finished connecting what proved to be a holographic projector, and as she activated it, an over head view of Tokyo came into view, showing seven more blinking dots set in a perfect circle around Tokyo tower and encompassing over a third of the entire city. They blinked serenely for a few seconds as lines of code scrolled across the screen, then a second image overlaid itself on the eight dots, lines connecting them in a geometric design within which numerous symbols were written, surrounded by a massive circle...

0

"Alright, so what's our sit-rep?" Tao-Ching asked as they gathered for breakfast, all of them yawning due to the short night. Mu bustled around cheerfully keeping glasses and plates filled. They had tried to make her sit down to eat with them but the poor girl had looked absolutely miserable until Clove had finally told her she could wait on them with a sigh. At least they had managed to get her to wear clothes, though the ones she had chosen had quite naturally been a maids uniform. Clove had been quite sure to tell her to wear more than just the apron when she had selected it.

Ukyo sighed in response to Tao-Ching's question. "I've pretty much come to the conclusion that there's almost nothing we can do to help this universe. Based on the state of the city around us, the small number of humans still surviving, and the condition of the entire planet, this battle is over and done with. It's become a war of attrition against a superior force, and we don't have a battleship armed with a wave motion gun in our back pocket. Blackmoon has devastated this Earth to the point that it is unlivable. If they didn't have Zhu-Shu, I'd vote we just investigate a means to revive Queen Serenity and King Endymion, and get the hell out of here. We'd have a much stronger chance to stop Blackmoon in our own universe than here."

Tao-Ching nodded. "Yeah." He rubbed his temples. "I swear, the Empress has a _knack_ for getting herself kidnapped."

Ukyo rolled her eyes. "Tell me about it."

Kagura looked up as Mu refilled her glass. "Do you truly suspect this girl is a spy?"

Half of the table looked at Clove, who sighed and nodded. "While I have as yet detected nothing suspicious within Mu herself, it is best to assume that anything she sees or hears is known to Xi'an Chi. That quite probably extends to myself and Konatsu as well, as the bearer of Mu's contract. Her collar is of a level of sophistication approaching the divine, more complex even than Zhu-Shu's goddess seals. By forcing me to accept her contract, Xi'an Chi has effectively removed me from play. You cannot trust me either in planning or the execution of any rescue plan. The chance that Xi'an Chi will be aware of anything I or Mu am involved in is too great."

Tao-Ching growled. "Which basically means he's neutralized the closest thing we have to a mage like himself."

"I am no match for him, Tao-Ching. I was little better than an object to be toyed with before he drowned me. He outclasses me as much as I did that pathetic ifrit, Rubeus."

"You're still a vastly more capable mage than anyone else here, myself included." Ying-Ying said. "But you're right. Even with all the wards we both have up, it's too risky to assume they can block something that is as much of a complete unknown as that collar." She sighed. "We're probably going to have to wait till we get back and can ask Urd and Belldandy, maybe even Skuld, for help. As good as Skuld is with complex devices, she might be able to help us remove it safely. Until then-" She shrugged helplessly.

"Well before we can plan to rescue Zhu-Shu, do we even have a clue where she might be?" Akane asked.

"The soldiers I was with say that the Blackmoon has a big ship in orbit, something they call the Fortress." Ranma said. "It's like a mountain, a giant rock with a castle on it, and armed to the teeth. It's Blackmoon's flagship. It's the command center for everything."

Ying-Ying gasped. "Oh no."

They all looked at her.

She closed her eyes as tears fell down her cheeks. "It's got to be the _Tianlong_. Lin Tzu's dreadnaught. He shot it from the sky over China during the final days."

Ukyo snorted. "Shot it down? Hardly. He slipped traitors aboard to sabotage her. He crippled her before she ever had a chance to be in battle! How dare that bastard steal my ship!" Her fist slammed into the table, making everyone jump and causing Mu to scurry behind Clove again as she peeked wide eyed at Ukyo.

Tao-Ching chuckled. "So I take it you are familiar with the ship in question?"

Ukyo's eyes narrowed. "Yes. The _Tianlong_ was my personal command. She was Lin's aerial palace. If she had been in service when Xi'an Chi had assaulted the Imperial Palace, it would have changed the entire outcome. He never would have been able to overrun the Palace, and Lin would have been safely aboard the _Tianlong_ instead of vulnerable and nearly trapped."

"That would explain why he took it out ahead of time. He probably planned to salvage it from the start." Tao-Ching leaned back. "There's no telling what he's changed in the last two thousand years, but the basic layout has to be similar."

Ukyo nodded. "It's a roughly circular mountain, two miles in diameter, about a mile from crest to bottom. The bottom is pure armor, about 20 feet thick, and enchanted to protect her from re-entry and weapons no matter how powerful. The Rim is a defense perimeter, about a quarter of a mile high, reinforced and covered in heavy cannon emplacements. Behind the rim is the Palace grounds, an artificial environment encased in mystical shields nearly as powerful as those on the bottom, centered on Lin's summer Palace. We took the whole damn mountain it was on and honeycombed it with enough tunnels and chambers to pack a fifth of the Imperial army on it. You've got to figure a crew of roughly a half million at a minimum. Not to mention five landing bays with enough space to park twenty or so battleships, and around a thousand hangers for fighter craft. It took thirty years to build her and she was in service for less than a week before Xi'an Chi's saboteurs crashed it into the Himalayas. Over a hundred thousand military personnel went down with her."

"Under the same circumstances, you'd have done the same, Ukyo." Tao-Ching shrugged.

Ukyo grimaced. "I know. It just galls me that he still managed to outmaneuver me."

"So basically, he's got his own Death Star, and we've got to pull a Han Solo and rescue the Princess." He rubbed his eyes. "Remind me when we get her back to paddle her tail for running off like that."

"You're going to have to stand in line."

Clove stood up, her breakfast on a tray, with Mu carrying a generous sampling of items for refills. "I will go back into our room and let you hash out what needs to be done. I am sorry that I am just a burden right now."

"Not true, Clove-chan, nyah. Clove-chan have own job do." Shan-Pu protested. "You fix Mu. Make not slave, mew."

As she was leaving, there was a knock at their dining room entrance, and they turned to see Sailor Pluto along with a small childlike person who was wrapped in an enormous cloak. She bowed.

"I have come to advise you that it is likely to be no earlier than the day after tomorrow that travel may resume to your homeworld."

"The Gate's still broken? Aw man!" Ranma grumped. The child-like figure glared at him.

"I am not broken! There is a temporal storm rampaging between the two planes. Until it passes I cannot re-establish contact with the Gate on your side."

Ranma blinked at the irate kid. "Huh?"

Pluto smiled. "May I introduce Gate. She's the Gate of Time I am Guardian over."

"She's ADORABLE!" Usagi squealed.

Nabiki shook her head. "I'm not even going to go there."

Tao-Ching chuckled. "Nothing surprises me anymore." He looked back at Pluto. "Anyway, got two questions. First is what can we do to free the King and Queen, and second, can you provide us with a ship? We have to go retrieve our missing companion."

"Endymion and Serenity are both encased within black crystal which has proven impervious to everything we have tried to bring to bear against it. Small Lady came to you in hopes that the Silver Crystal might be powerful enough to undo the prison and free our Lord and Lady. But for a ship, we have none to offer. Blackmoon destroyed our fleet in the asteroid belt following the defeat of Saturn."

"Nothing at all? Not even a captured vessel?"

"No, nothing."

Gate was rubbing her jaw thoughtfully. "What about that one in the museum? I know it's a Silver Millennium relic, but it's still space worthy. They did fly it back here from Mars."

"The last Duke's yacht? I had forgotten about that."

Rei blinked. "Did you just say they brought back a ship from Mars?"

Pluto nodded. "It's an old ship. The _Zhulong. _They found it in the remains of the old royal docks on Mount Olympus. They assumed it was the Duke's personal yacht from the colors she was flying, but it's an unusual ship for a Martian vessel."

"It's not Martian. It's an Imperial vessel, Lin Tzu gave it to my parents as part of my dowry." She laughed bitterly. "I was dreaming of the day I was betrothed just before Zhu-Shu disappeared, and saw it in my memories. By the time we got back to Earth, the war had already started. It was the last time I ever saw them." Tears splashed on the table. "It was Lin's. She gave them her own personal transport, so they could come visit me whenever they wished."

Ying-Ying vanished from her seat to reappear in front of Pluto. "Please. Give us that ship. With it we have a chance. Not just to rescue Zhu-Shu, but to maybe help you survive."

They all turned at the laughter coming from Ukyo. Her armor burned with blue fire as she stood, still laughing. She turned to Pluto, a strange fire in her eyes. "The Gods are kind today," she said wickedly.

"Ukyo?" Ranma asked worriedly. "You okay, man?"

She turned back to the table and leaned over to put her palms on it, still chuckling. "Congratulations, people," she said triumphantly as she looked around the table and all the faces wondering if she had gone mad. "We just got our Wave Motion Gun."

There was a collective "Huh?"

Ukyo grinned like a madwoman. "The _Zhulong _wasn't just Lin's personal yacht. It was a vessel built with the entire harem in mind. Originally, it was the command ship for the Imperial fleet, until the _Tianlong_ was finished. There was a plan to build one for each royal family in the federation, but we never had time to complete them all. The _Zhulong_ was the prototype, the testbed for what we had planned to do with the others."

"Which was?" Tao-Ching asked with a raised eyebrow.

Ukyo pointed to the Senshi. "To amplify them. By multiple orders of magnitude." Her eyes turned to Rei. "I fine tuned the _Zhulong_ myself before she was delivered. She wasn't exactly part of your dowry. She was going to be given to you on your wedding day."

Rei blinked. "For me?"

Ukyo grinned. "Yes, beloved. Or to be more exact, it was a gift for your Phoenix form. With you onboard, it could provide an infinite supply of power, and almost a thousand fold magnification of your attacks. Basically dear heart, it's going to make your 'Ground Zero' into the biggest damn cannon in the solar system."

Tao-Ching laughed. Ukyo looked at him and grinned.

"Trust me, it gets better." She jerked a thumb at the rest of the Senshi. "It'll amplify them as well. Not as well, but still enormously. But best of all, I never removed the customizations I had made for its use as a fleet command and control vessel. I had still planned to use her as a backup if we lost the _Tianlong." _ She gave a "what can you do" shrug. "And the day I needed her, she was parked on Mars." She sat back down and leaned back in her chair. "She's the exact opposite of the _Tianlong_. Small, agile, stealthy, and designed for surgical strikes and tactical warfare. If all her systems are still functional that is."

Pluto spread her hands. "She is intact, and her engines work. Other than that, I couldn't tell you. She was found preserved in an intact hanger under the ruins, and has been collecting dust in the museum ever since. The efforts to investigate and restore it were abandoned when Blackmoon attacked."

Tao-Ching pointed. "Ukyo, Rei, Ying-Ying. You go check it out and see if it's still usable for a rescue mission." he looked around. "Anyone else want to go with them? We don't need everyone to go look and see what we can do to break the Queen and King out of some crystals."

Tatewaki looked at Kagura. "I am curious to see one of these flying ships, would you care to join me, My Lady?"

"Certainly." She rose with him and looked around. "Where is my sister?"

"Myah. Little mirror girl follow Mu and Ko-chan to room. Muuu"

Kagura smiled. "I see. She has taken quite a liking to your Zhu-Shu. Hopefully she understands that Mu is not her."

Ying-Ying smiled at her. "She does. She's really quite intelligent. She's just not comfortable around people yet."

Kagura smiled back. "I confess, I don't really understand her. She's much older than I am. But she's my sister. I want her to be able to experience the happiness I have found too."

"Of course you do. She's a really cute little mirror. Give her time. Eventually, she'll learn how to have emotions."

Tao-Ching looked around the rest of the party. "Okay, the Senshi and I are going to look at these crystal prisons. Anyone who wants to come, come along, the rest of you should stay here."

Shan-Pu stood and grabbed Akane and Ranma's braids. "Shan-Pu not care about crystal, nyah. She not get to finish sleep. Take pillows and go nap, mrrrrrr." She headed for her room dragging the pair of giggling girls behind her. Nabiki waved them an amused goodbye.

"Okay furball. Let's go see what we get to break."

0

Clove sat on the bed, crying. Mu stroked her hair, obviously hoping to cheer her mistress up, but not knowing how. Kanna was kneeling by the door, observing dispassionately. She tilted her head.

"Why do you cry?" she asked in her near whisper.

Clove shrugged. "Because I want to be able to help my soulmates, and instead, I cannot allow them to even be in my presence."

"Dispose of the girl."

Clove shook her head. "It's not that easy, small one. I am responsible for her. Her wellbeing is in my hands."

"That is not logical."

Clove smiled bitterly. "No, I suppose not."

Her eyes shifted colors. "It is a Kunoichi's duty to protect her mistress, and her mistress's duty to take care of her servants. We are her possessions, but we also are her children. It is a mistresses duty above all to love those whose lives have become hers."

Kanna tilted her head the other way, looking puzzled. "I... am furniture."

Konatsu shook her head. "No. Your master was a very bad master if that is how he treated you." She reached over to pet Mu's head, prompting the worried looking girl to smile. "This girl may be a shackle, but she has a soul, and a heart, and they have both been bound to us. It falls to us to treasure those precious gifts, and to bear the responsibility of returning her to humanity. No matter what it takes, we must release her from this curse."

"Because she is a Zhu-Shu?"

"No. Because she is a Mu. Because she is herself. She might have been made as a copy, but she has her own unique soul. And because she has that soul, she deserves to have that soul acknowledged. Even if she were just one of millions of Zhu-Shu's, she is still herself." She hugged Mu fiercely, Mu looking surprised at first before breaking out into a happy smile. "My sisters never acknowledged me. I will die before I will allow anyone to do the same to her."

Kanna nodded once, seemingly satisfied. "Onee-chan acknowledges me." She wrapped her arms around the mirror, her eyes distant.

Ever so slightly, the corners of her mouth rose...

_Authors Notes: The Tianlong (Heavenly Dragon, pronounced T'ien-Lung) is a Celestial Dragon that guards heavenly places, as well as the Chinese name for Draco. The Zhulong (Torch Dragon, pronounced Chu-Lung, not Who like the Zhu in Zhu-Shu) is a solar dragon in Chinese myth. Mu-Sān (literally Female-two) simply shows the contempt Xi'an Chi had when he named her, both the original, and the current one. The symbol used also can be translated as mother, the original Mu's sole purpose._

_And seriously, you didn't think Rei would dream about seeing a ship if it wasn't going to play a role in the story did you? Nor is this the first mention of the Tianlong. I wonder who will be able to tell me when she first appeared?_


	6. Chapter Five: Unforeseen Events

Chapter Five: Unforeseen Events.

The museum was less than a mile outside of the Palace, in a sector that had once been a cultural showcase. Now, the theaters and parks were empty, only the streetlights indicating that the zone had not been wholly abandoned. Their driver pulled up to the museum entrance and their escort secured a perimeter as the captain unlocked the doors. It took several minutes for the soldiers to get the lights back on, and they passed the time examining the artifacts near the door. She almost wanted to laugh seeing such mundane items as a toaster and a rice cooker labeled as "Old Earth" artifacts, but it brought home how much had changed for this universe in the thousand years since her time.

If they couldn't rescue Zhu-Shu again, and stop Blackmoon, would their universe end up the same? Despite Ying-Ying's optimism that the _Zhulong_ would be of great use to the Earth after they had used it to recover Zhu-Shu, Ukyo wasn't as confident of their chances. Things were just too one sided now. Even if they could rescue Serenity from her crystal prison, with only Ami and Makoto left of the Inner Senshi, she couldn't see a happy outcome. With the reports that the soldiers had given her of more than a hundred vessels in orbit, and the ease with which Xi'an Chi had been able to whisk Zhu-Shu away, it was obvious that the Blackmoon could have already ended the war. There was something that they wanted in Crystal Tokyo, something that likely stood a good chance of destruction in an all out assault. If they knew what it was...

The lights came on finally and the captain led them to the gallery further in. The _Zhulong_ hovered in space over the large main room of the museum, and Ukyo smiled.

"Well, from out here, she looks as good as she did the last time I saw her."

Kuno raised an eyebrow. "This is a space vessel? It looks more like a sailing ship."

Ukyo shrugged. "Travel during the Silver Millennium was a lot more like sailing than the rockets used in our current universe. The actual ship is based on a sailing vessel, with mystical shields surrounding it to contain an atmosphere and provide defense. The bridge is forward, in the dragon's head. There are three decks internally, plus the upper deck, and a storage hold. Deck one is the surface deck, used primarily for boarding and sightseeing. Deck two is the command deck, three is living quarters, and four is engineering and weapons. The lowest deck is storage. Those things that look like wings folded to her side are the Solar sails. Depending on where it is in its orbit, she can make it to Mars in as little as 20 days, making her one of the fastest ships in the Solar Federation. The Old Solar Empire was supposed to have ships capable of faster than light, but we had yet to recover that kind of knowledge. The _Zhulong_ is technically a cruiser class vessel, about half the size of a battleship, but she packs more firepower than one. With a trained crew, and the Senshi aboard, she would have outclassed anything in the sky but the _Tianlong_. We had almost finished building Serenity's when Lin decided to give this one to you, Rei."

Rei sighed wistfully. "I wish she had waited till after we had been married. You needed her, and instead she was sitting idle on Mars while I was on the Moon."

Ukyo shrugged. "Then it wouldn't be here now, and we'd have no hope at all to rescue Zhu-chan."

She directed the soldiers to connect the gangplank and start removing the various equipment scattered across the upper deck, remnants of the historians abandoned attempt to study and restore the _Zhulong._ As they complied, Ying-Ying noticed her wincing and rubbing her temples.

"Are you okay, Uc-chan?"

Ukyo nodded. "Just a headache. Too many memories coming in too fast. I feel like I have a whirlwind in my head."

Ying-Ying stepped over to rub her temples, her fingers glowing faintly. The pained look on Ukyo's face eased.

"That tickles."

"Just a light pain relieving spell. I don't know why, but you are retrieving Orihime's memories at a vastly accelerated rate. It doesn't match any of the projections that Legend discussed with me. There are a lot of things I wasn't prepared for. I never expected to come to the future, and I certainly had not expected you and Rei to have become lovers, though I am overjoyed at the fact. I had believed I faced a future in which our lovely firebird would have always remained just out of reach."

Rei snuck in a kiss on her cheek. "Well you don't, because I am right here."

Ying-Ying giggled. "Indeed. You might be one catalyst that is making Ukyo remember the past so quickly, or it could be her armor, it might even have something to do with Clove's probing her the day after she attacked Zhu-chan as a dragon. I just don't know. There are too many variables."

"Clove probed me that morning? I thought Lo-Shen couldn't find any traces of meddling."

"Clove is very skilled, beloved. She erased the memories."

Ukyo reached out to tousle her hair. "Like you did of your visit when Lo-Shen and I were in my head?"

Ying-Ying blinked. "You remember?"

Ukyo nodded. "Yeah. I still haven't figured out what it was I was supposed to make a choice about though. Or do I still have to make it?"

Ying-Ying smiled lovingly. "You've already made it, my warrior."

"I did?"

"You did."

"So what was it I made a choice about?"

"You chose us." Ying-Ying pointed to the Guan-Do in Ukyo's hand. "You chose to be our Guardian, instead of staying just Ukyo the Okonomiyaki Chef."

Ukyo blinked. "So, the world crisis point you were talking about was Zhu-Shu making the engagement?"

Ying-Ying blushed. "Well, it was a crisis point for my world, at least. Life without you would have sucked. I want all my soulmates! I'm very selfish that way. It's bad enough knowing that one of us is imprisoned. To have been so close to both you and Rei, yet separated..." she shuddered. "Thank you for not rejecting us."

Ukyo hugged her. "Thank Clove too, sugar. I don't know what she did, but the link between Zhu-Shu and I was a hundred times stronger that morning. I could feel her every thought and emotion clearly. I couldn't have made any other choice and lived with myself, and the way I would have made her feel." She stepped back to look at the pink haired girl. "That's why I had no objections to Clove, my flower. When we touched while Konatsu was kissing me that first time, I felt her remorse over it. How guilty she felt for almost doing to me what she's done to Konatsu. But I knew that what she had done had made it possible for me to overcome my own stubborn idiocy. Because of her, I have you, and Rei, and Konatsu, and Zhu-Shu, and even Sarhia. She gave you all back to me when I didn't even know I was missing you. She's earned her place with us."

Rei looked at her questioningly. "Sarhia? You mean Zhu Shu's teacher, the one who taught her Shiva's dance?"

Ukyo gave her a sly grin. "Yup. She's going to be a surprise for Zhu-chan. Wait till we get back to our Earth. I've got to go and dig her out of a mountain." She turned back to Ying-Ying. "You'll love her, I know it. Especially you, my kinky little wife. She has six arms."

Ying-Ying blushed bright red. "Oooooooh."

The troops had finally cleared the deck so they could get to the forward hatch, so Ukyo waved to Kuno and Kagura, who had been using her feather to examine the outside of the ship. They joined them outside the hatch. "See any external damage?"

Kuno shook his head. "Nay my lady. There are a few areas where repairs have seemed to have been made, but no current damage."

Ukyo nodded. "Probably when they brought her here from Mars." She stepped up to the hatch, which opened on her approach. They all followed her into the ship. It was dark, but her armor offered plenty of light. She motioned aft. "That way is the war room and strategic command. It's were Lin Tzu and I would have been directing battle. We'll get to it later." She pointed forward. "The bridge is this way. Let's go see if we can get the power on."

They followed her down the short corridor to another hatch, which slid aside to large room. Two large bay windows allowed light from outside into the room, which resembled a bridge from a sci-fi anime more than it did a bridge for a sailing vessel. Rei whistled. "Wow. I didn't think it'd look this sophisticated."

Ukyo laughed. "Magic as Science, my dear." She strode to a nearby station and lay her fingers on a few crystals. The station lit up, and she reached to touch several more crystals. They felt as a distinct thrumming began, making the floor vibrate softly. "Main engines online. Bringing up ships power now."

The bridge illuminated as all the stations sprang to life and overhead lights came on. One after another, various holographic displays flickered on and steadied. Rei looked at it and raised an eyebrow.

"Um, Uc-chan, this looks really complex. How are we going to fly it?"

"Not a problem. Ship's got a self willed intelligence." She turned towards the center of the bridge. "Hello _Zhulong_, My name is Ukyo, Access code guardian alpha prime, acknowledge."

Dead silence greeted her. She repeated herself, again with no result. She cursed. "Something is not right here." She turned to the door behind the command chair and keyed the crystals next to it. The door slid aside to reveal a chair. Ukyo blinked.

"What the fuck. Where the hell is her Yggdrasil seed? What the hell is this chair?"

"Something is wrong?" Kagura asked.

"Yeah, something is very wrong. Someone's been tampering with this ship. Her brain is gone."

0

Xi'an Chi laughed as he observed the records of the breakfast the Nerimans had gathered for. Emeraude had been startled when Ukyo had described the general layout of the _Tianlong_, but she had been waved to silence as Xi'an Chi finished watching until Clove lead Mu back into the bedroom. The record paused as Xi'an Chi looked thoughtful.

"Master?"

"Yes my pet?"

"How is it possible for them to know so much about this vessel?"

The black dragoness on the other side of the throne gave her a "who cares" look before curling up to sleep again. Xi'an Chi looked at Emeraude. "Because that is not 'Ukyo' anymore."

"I don't understand."

"Ukyo Kounji is the reincarnation of Song Orihime, the Guardian of the Dragon." He waved to the side of the throne room, where a statue of a large female Oni stood, naked but still clutching an ornate bladed staff. "The intelligence we gathered is in error now because it's about people who no longer exist. It seems that both Ukyo and Rei have recovered at least some of their memories. Orihime knows about this vessel because she is it's architect. I stole it from her some two thousand years ago. It's not quite the same vessel she once knew, but it's external appearance has changed little. Now that she knows about it, I have little doubt that she will learn very soon about another survivor from that long ago war. I know it will raise her hopes, but she's merely playing right into my plans. That's why I had you deliver that pathetic Mu to them."

"I was curious as to why you wanted me to give the prototype to them."

"My former self failed utterly with making her a new Dragon's Child, but she was a testbed for several other projects as well. The dopplegangers were one such project, but it was a different one entirely that led to her being put into stasis and her memories wiped clean. That experiment succeeded only too well."

"I see."

"Do you, my pet? I was laughing just now at the pitiful attempt to prevent my being aware of their plans by having Clove and Mu lock themselves into a room. While her enslavement to Clove of all people is deliciously ironic, it's just a bonus. I knew one or another of them would have no choice but to complete her contract. Soon, they will have no choice but to use the girl, knowing that they will be unable to hide anything from me, and that no matter what they do they will be proceeding into a trap. Very soon, they will learn how necessary she is to them, and the trap will be complete."

0

Miss Tsuchigumo looked over the papers again.

"Well you certainly have an impressive school record. Some of the finest in Tokyo for your primary and secondary, though you transferred to Kyoto for your third year of middle school till now."

The slim figure in black standing before her bowed. "That is correct, Madam. However, family obligations have required my return to Tokyo and my enrollment in Furinkan. Miss Anami will not allow me to shirk my education despite my duties. She was quite insistent that I must attend school as a condition of employment."

"You have a job?"

"Indeed Madam. I am a butler." Light glittered off his narrow glasses as he bowed. "For Miss Nabiki-sama and Tao-Ching-sama."

Miss Tsuchigumo pushed her own glasses back up her nose. "And why Furinkan? I can see you once attended the same middle school as Kodachi Kuno."

"Hai. I am aware Miss Kuno attends Furinkan. Her uncle was quite explicit that she has changed from the girl whom drove me to Kyoto. I have promised him I will take no actions against her unless she attempts to harm my master or mistress."

"The Director, hummm."

"Yes Madam. My Grandfather is his butler. The debt the Hasai family owes to its saviors is beyond repayment. Were it not for Inuyasha, his brother, Lord Sesshomaru, and the Hibiki's, our clan would have perished. For 300 years, we have awaited the day we could finally begin our service to the Hibiki clan, and the ones who returned to us our honor, Lord Tao-Ching and Lady Nabiki."

Miss Tsuchigumo blinked. "But Tao-Ching doesn't go to school, and Nabiki has been absent nearly two weeks now."

He nodded again. "They will return soon. I will await them."

She tapped her nails on the desk. "So if you know the Director, I must assume you are aware of other things?"

"My grandmother was a spider as well, Miss Tsuchigumo. Our family has intermingled with youkai for generations. I bear the blood of many youkai in my lineage. In addition to my duties to the Hibiki, I also desire to participate in this experiment occurring in Furinkan. My family owes its existence to youkai, and has freely accepted them within our clan. It is our hope to spread the benefits we have shared in so doing to the whole world."

"Good. That relieves me of having to explain the unique situation this school is in. I will take you to join your home room now. However, the only class with available seats is Kodachi's."

"Her uncle tells me she is much changed. I am curious to see this 'new' Kodachi."

She looked at his black uniform, impeccably neat, with a soft grey cravat matching the ruffles at his wrists that almost covered black gloves. He pushed his narrow glasses up his nose elegantly. With his long raven black hair neatly tied back with a ebony ribbon, he looked like a butler straight out of an anime.

"I take it the uniform is staying?"

"Yes madam. The school uniform is far too informal for my position. A butler must always appear his best for his masters."

She sighed. "You realize you're going to have half the girls in school breaking their hearts over you."

"It cannot be helped, madam. There is only one girl who could have ever claimed my heart, and Kodachi destroyed her and my sole chance at happiness. It matters not how many women toss their hearts at my feet, I have no heart to give," he said coldly.

The spider-woman raised an eyebrow at that as she lead him out of the office and across the school to class 1-G.

0

Kodachi was chatting with Kyoko about the bracelets they had acquired after Lo-Shen's familiar ceremony. "So, I know we're not supposed to play with them until practice today, but what do you think might happen when we can finally activate them?"

Kyoko shrugged. "I don't know. She said they were going to be like pactio cards. If they are, then it should transform into a special costume and a weapon that fits us." She giggled. "That probably means I'm going to get magic pom-poms!"

Kodachi smiled. "And I will get a ribbon, I'm sure." Her eyes looked over to where Mousse was desperately trying to finish her homework before the bell rang. She clucked her tongue. "Mou-chan, you really should have told me you hadn't done your homework before letting me seduce you last night."

The angelic looking girl smiled sheepishly. "But you were hungry, mistress."

Kyoko raised an eyebrow. "Hungry?"

Kodachi blushed. "After Lo-Shen performed her ceremony yesterday, I was struck with a very strange sensation. Hunger is the only way I can describe it. Eating dinner didn't help it any, and every time I looked at Mou-chan, it just got worse and worse. The craving to seduce her got overwhelming."

"I see. Did you feel much better after sex?"

"Definitely."

"You should probably talk to Kaede. You're half succubus, and that sounds like one of her feeding frenzies."

"A feeding frenzy?"

Kyoko nodded. "Succubi feed on sexual energy. She says most humans tend to toss it around indiscriminately, and it tends to make her hungry for us because it's like an appetizer. When we take her to someplace like the Club, or anywhere that humans are releasing a lot of sexual energy, she gets so worked up that she'll wear all of us out. It's completely normal for succubi. Maybe you are just starting to manifest your succubus half."

Kodachi looked thoughtful. "Interesting."

Kyoko looked slyly at Mousse. "It will make your love life very interesting if that's the case, Mou-chan."

The tenshi blushed. "It is already interesting, Kyoko-chan."

Miss Tsuchigumo entered the room just as the bell rang. They rose, bowed and sat back down in greeting to her and the homeroom teacher and looked at her expectantly.

"Students, I'd like to let you know we are welcoming a new transfer student into your class today. He is already familiar with the experiment going on at Furinkan, and is part youkai. Please treat him as you would any of your fellow students, and show him our hospitality."

A figure dressed all in black entered the classroom at her signal and came to stand beside her. Kodachi stood in shock. "Raijin!?" she blurted out as she stared at him wide eyed.

He gave her a cool look. "Yes Kodachi-sama. Please, reseat yourself, madam." He turned to the rest of the class and bowed. "Greetings my fellow students. I am Raijin Hasai, the tenth. Butler to the Hibiki clan. It is a pleasure to meet you all."

0

Clove sat soaking up the heat from the bath as Mu washed her back. Kanna was seated a short distance away, carefully polishing her mirror.

"Do you carry that with you everywhere?" she asked curiously.

Kanna looked up at her and nodded once. "We are one." She held up her mirror. "This is also my body."

"I see. So that's why Ying-Ying keeps calling you a "cute little mirror."

Kanna nodded. "I am it's reflection."

"That would explain why you have so little emotion. You're the spirit of an inanimate object that has become self aware."

"A mirror needs no emotion."

"Yet you seem to love your sister."

Kanna tilted her head at Clove. "She is my onee-san. She acknowledges me. Is that 'love'?"

Konatsu giggled as Clove's eyes shifted. "I would call it love."

Kanna looked thoughtful. "I must reflect on this."

Konatsu reached out to tousle her hair. "You do that. She's a good Onee-chan. Much better than mine were. I can see she really cares about you."

"I would not know. Naraku believed her a traitor. Many times I was sent to watch her. I was ordered to kill her. Yet I did not. I do not understand why I did not."

"Because you love her. You might not understand it, but you do. She's your sister." Konatsu sighed. "I'd have given anything to have had a sister who I could have loved. My onee-chans were so hateful and awful that all I could do for years was plot how to kill them and my step-mother and end my misery. But in the end, I could never really bring myself to do it. I'd always mess something up because no matter how I hated them, they were the only family I had."

"You have a much better family now, Ko-Chan." Clove said. "One that loves you utterly. Don't waste your pity on those monsters anymore."

"I know. I just regret that I could never have the sisters that I wanted." She looked at Kanna. "You look after your onee-chan, okay? Even if you don't understand what love is, you love your onee-chan, and she loves you. Never forget that."

Kanna nodded. "I will remember."

There was a gasp from behind them, and they turned to see Mu had suddenly stiffened. She was staring into space, and for some reason, a large blue gemstone had appeared on her forehead. Mystical symbols were swirling in her eyes as she trembled. Lines of blue traced along her skin, trailers of energy coming from them like wisps of smoke. Then she suddenly stopped shaking as her eyes focused off into the distance.

"Main engines online. Power Systems at full. Secondary systems on standby. Diagnostics routines operational. All systems reporting functional. Life-forms detected on main bridge. Two Unidentified. Guardian armor identified. Armor occupant unidentified, signature inconsistent with Song Orihime. Royal Physician Identified. Signature consistent with Song Ying-Ying. Phoenix Regalia identified. Occupant signature inconsistent with Ares, Lady Phoenix. Please identify."

Konatsu blinked at her. "What the hell?"

"I don't know." Clove said just as startled. "I didn't think she could speak at all beyond a few words. I am not sure that this is the same Mu."

"Please identify." Mu repeated.

"What will we do?"

"Mu! Can you hear me?"

The girl turned to look at her. "Yes mistress. Mu is on standby. Awaiting identification." She turned to face back forward. "Acknowledged. Guardian Alpha Prime access accepted. Welcome aboard Guardian."

Clove blinked. "What the hell."

"Error. Cannot access systems. Receiving data only. This unit is too far from terminal. Systems cannot be brought out of standby until this unit is returned to base." Glowing eyes turned back to Clove. "Please assist this unit in returning to base. Returning control to Mu-san. Yggdrasil Seed 0000879 on standby."

The lines on Mu's skin vanished as her eyes ceased to glow. She blinked several times. "Mistress? Mu feel very strange. She has picture of ship in head and feel like she must go there." she said in confusion. "And her head feel funny." she rubbed at the spot where the blue gem was.

Clove shook her head. "It's okay, little one." She reached her hand out to Mu's head, her glowing palm covering the gem. "My my, what ever are you?"

Mu's eyes glowed again. "Yggdrasil Seed 0000879. Command interface for vessel designate Mu-San. Formerly named Zhulong. I have been merged with this unit for 967 years. We have been in stasis. All records between Silver Millennium Date 1023 to present have been deleted. Current Silver Millennium Date is 3078. 2055 years of data is unaccounted for."

"And why are you in my little Mu?"

"Unknown. Data deleted. Mu-san and I are symbiotically fused. Cause unknown. We are one. You are Clove-sama, yes? You are the master to whom we are bound. Please assist me in returning to our host vessel. We are incomplete without our ship. We seek only to serve. I have been activated with the ship. Mu and I are two parts of the same being. I have restored her knowledge of language to facilitate communications." Her glowing eyes blinked. "We are similar to yourself. We also share a body as you do with your other."

"I see." Clove said, not really sure she did. The Seed's choppy sentences and monotone voice made it hard to be sure she had heard her correctly. The lack of tonal inflections forced her to guess at half of her words.

_What are we going to do?_ Konatsu asked in her head.

_What else can we do? I have no idea what she is talking about, but I have a feeling Ukyo will._ She stood and stepped out of the pool to her dress and pulled out the communicator Ukyo had given her. "Clove to Ukyo."

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Are you having any difficulties over there?"

Ukyo growled. "You could say that. The ships brain is missing."

"Would that be something called a 'Yggdrasil seed'?"

Dead silence came over the comm for several seconds. "Now how on earth could you know that?"

"Um, I've been talking to her. She's fused into Mu and asking us to return her to her ship."

"Jesus H Fucking Christ. How in the hell?"

"She doesn't know. She claims her data was wiped. She only knows she's been fused to Mu for 900 something years. She said she and Mu have been in stasis."

"When did this happen?"

"Just a few minutes ago. She started talking about 'systems activating' and confirming something called 'Guardian Alpha Prime' and then said she was too far away and could we please return her to her ship."

Ukyo sighed. "So much for trying to keep you out of the loop in case she's a spy. Damn him. He's three steps ahead of us!"

"What should I do."

"We've got no choice. Bring her here. She's the ship's brain. The _Zhulong_ is just a pleasure craft without her. We can fly her from point to point, but without the brain, nothing else will work."

"And with that slave collar, can we even be certain of that?"

"No. We'll have to take our chances." There was silence for a moment before Ukyo spoke again. "Clove, look, I know how little confidence you have in yourself. It's okay. I want you to know I have confidence in you. I know what you've done. I know how guilty you feel about all of this, but it's okay. You are better than Xi'an Chi. He might be more powerful, but he can't hold a candle to your skill and genius. I believe in you. I know you will find a way to remove Mu's chains."

"My skills make me a monster, Ukyo." Clove said biting her lip.

"Maybe once. But you belong to me now, got it? You're my monster now. And I am your Guardian. I won't let you feel guilty anymore. We need you. We need you to free Mu, and break this trap. Understand?"

"Y-yes."

"Good. Now get your and Konatsu's cute little asses over here ASAP with Mu. The sooner we get this ship operational, the sooner we can go get your sister. And while we do that, your job is to find a way to break that chain."

Clove nodded firmly. "Understood."

"Can you portal?"

"I haven't had enough time to recharge. We'll have to come on foot."

"Be careful. You can follow the beacon on the communicator, but we've got the soldiers with us."

"Don't worry Uc-chan" Konatsu cut in. "I am her kunoichi. I will keep her safe."

"You're in the same body, Ko-chan. You had better." The comm line went dead.

Clove looked to where Mu had been toweling Kanna off. "Okay, get dressed. We're going to join up with Ukyo and the others." She sighed. "Hopefully anyway," she muttered under her breath.

"Why are you so nervous, Clove-chan?"

"We're about to go into a strange city alone, dear."

"Of course we aren't." She giggled. "We'll have an army with us."

"What army?"

Dozens of pops came from all around the room as it was suddenly filled with shadow clones, all dressed in Konatsu's regalia. The closest one bowed and gave her a wink. "An army of me, of course," she said.

Clove reached out to poke at her. "Wow, you're solid."

"I'm using your manna. I can make all of the me's solid."

"Really?"

"Yup."

"Then answer me a question, Ko-chan dear."

"Yes?"

"Why are you not doing this all the time? We may share a body, but it would be so much easier for people to interact with us if you kept at least one clone around at all times."

Konatsu blinked. "I never thought of that!"

Clove shook her head. "Silly girl." She wrapped her arms around the Konatsu in front of her. "Not to mention it would make possible something I have been dying to do."

All the Konatsu's blushed as she peeked into Clove's mind. "Oh, my. Yes, I suppose keeping a clone around _would_ make that possible." She giggled.

"And I bet having a separate body would make the others quite happy too, you know."

All the Konatsu's grinned. "Well, let's go join them and find out," the one in her arms suggested.

Clove laughed and took Mu's hand on one side and Kanna's on the other as she followed her escort of Konatsu's out the door.

0

Kodachi sat under her tree with Mousse, their picnic sheet spread out as they ate lunch, and looked morosely to another tree a few yards away, where Raijin had set up his own lunch. The young butler had pulled out a small one person table, complete with table cloth, place settings and several covered dishes and lit a three pronged candelabra before he sat down. He carefully uncorked a bottle of what she knew was grape juice and poured himself some in a wineglass before lifting the lid to one of the dishes and serving himself a portion.

She sighed. "Are you still angry with me?" she asked finally.

Raijin carefully cut a bite of his steak and chewed it before answering. "Angry? It is not a butler's place to hold a grudge, Kodachi-sama."

Kodachi winced at the cold tone. "I- I know I was horrible to you Raijin-san. For what it's worth, I am deeply regretful for what I did to both of you. I know I can never make up for it, but I am sorry."

"What is in the past is in the past, Kodachi-sama. It cannot be changed."

Kodachi shook her head at Mousse when she tried to reach for her at the sight of her tears. "No Mou-chan. I- I have to accept this responsibility," she whispered. She looked up at heavens and prayed for strength, then brought her eyes down to stare at the grass.

"I- I have heard she still calls you 'Senpai'," she said softly. "Even after all I did, she still thinks of you."

Raijin's hands stopped cutting another piece of steak. They were motionless for long moments before he resumed. "She should forget about me," he said softly. "I am no longer worthy of her."

Kodachi shook her head sadly. "No Rai-chan. I am to blame, not you!"

"Do not call me that!" He said tightly.

Kodachi sobbed, again shaking her head when Mousse reached for her. The angelic girl looked at her forlornly. "I- I am sorry Raijin-san. Please. I was the only villain. I seduced you both. It's all because of me, no-one else."

"Regardless of who's fault it is, what is done has been done. You have stained us both beyond redemption. You took from us that which belonged only to the other. You played with us and tossed us aside like trash when you were done."

Kodachi sobbed hard for several minutes as Raijin calmly continued to eat and Mousse looked on helplessly. She finally sniffled. "I- I know my crimes can never be atoned for, Raijin-san. I-if you are here to punish me, I- I accept that. I will suffer however much you desire."

The knife and fork were set down as Raijin wiped his lips with a napkin. "Then you misunderstand my appearance, Kodachi-sama. Your being here is incidental to my duties to the Hibiki. I am attending this school solely because my Mistress, Nabiki Hibiki attends it, and my senior, Miss Anami, has made it one of my daily assignments."

"Then- then why did you choose to sit so close to me, Raijin-san?"

Cold blue eyes looked at her over his narrow oval glasses. "Do you truly need to ask, Kodachi-sama?"

She sighed deeply and sniffled again. "Y-yes. I don't understand, Raijin. Why do you torment me so if I mean so little to you? I know I hurt you and Makoto! I hurt you more than I can bear! You are the worst of all my many sins. What can I do to show you how much I regret what I did?"

"There is nothing within your power that can be done, Kodachi-sama."

"Then why! Tell me why!"

Raijin placed his dirty dishes into a covered tray, and made the entire table setting vanish, leaving only the table cloth, the candle and his wineglass. He placed his elbows on the table and looked at her over his glasses. "Why Kodachi-sama?" he said with a slight smile. "Because you stole something away from me that can never be replaced. Something that _she_ deserved but which _you_ desired out of petty lust. Just as you stole something from her that was meant to be mine. Regardless, you still have it in your possession, Kodachi-sama, and all my self-loathing and wishing over the past year and a half has not changed that."

Kodachi blinked in confusion, her tears still falling. "I- I don't understand."

Raijin sighed softly and drained his glass. With a quick sweeping motion he stood, the table and chair vanishing as he did so. He pulled his gloves tight and straightened his jacket. "You are a thief, Kodachi-sama. I love Makoto more than words can say, but you took her from me. You took her from me just as you took me from her. And so long as you continue to retain possession of what you have stolen, we can never be together. I sat here, Kodachi-sama, for the same reason I will sit here tomorrow, and every day hereafter. Because you are a thief, and you still have my heart."

He bowed, then turned and walked back towards the school, leaving Kodachi staring after him in bewilderment.

0

"Alright girls," Lo-Shen said as they settled down onto the benches beside the athletic field. "My manna's fully recharged from yesterday, so we're going to see what little bonuses you got from becoming my familiars. I've got shields up around the field so no-one should see us, and it should keep anything you unleash contained."

"And it should give Luna and I a chance to gauge your power verses the Senshi's." Artemis spoke up. "We're just here to observe, so don't worry about us."

They nodded, Kodachi still looking morose, while Mousse held her hand tightly. Ai was the first to stand. "Alright, since I'm the sole human here, let's see what this spell does for me. How do I activate it?"

"Just touch the big gemstone and say 'I invoke the contract'," Lo-Shen said. "It will invoke a henshin, which takes about ten seconds. Keep that in mind on the battlefield. During the henshin, you will be vulnerable if your opponent is not distracted. All of you are much better trained martial artists than the actual Senshi, so you should be able to cover for one another, letting some of you change first, and then covering the rest while they henshin."

"Does the henshin hide our identities like the Senshi's does?"

"No. I'm afraid not. I don't have the manna to waste on frivolities." Lo-Shen shrugged. "You are all relatively unknowns, so the odds of Blackmoon knowing who you are specifically are low. After all, Cooan didn't recognize any of you even though she knew of at least two of you. "

"True." Ai stepped a few feet away from the others and turned to face them. "Okay girls, showtime. I invoke the contract!"

Energy poured out of the bracelet to envelop her and lift her off the ground. She felt as her cheerleader's outfit burned away and bands of warm fire surrounded her and drew tight. Something formed in her hand as she settled to the ground and she realized she was now in heels. She looked down and groaned.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!"

The frilly pink bustier was lowcut, with a large bow at the base of the deep v. It was matched by a massive bow on her derriere, which had twin swallowtails dangling behind her in a wide train. Additional pink bows adorned her long pink lace gloves, and the tops of her stockings, attached to the bustier via garters. A short fuku wrapped around her hips, dipping to a point in front and back while riding high on her hips. Her high heeled stilettos were also pink, and had bows adorning them. She glared at Lo-Shen.

"Just what the hell is this? I NEVER wear pink! Or lace and bows!"

Lo-Shen grinned. "Don't blame me. The spell reflects your inner self. That's quite a cute outfit, dearie. Very sexy too."

Ai growled and looked at the long staff in her hand. It was also pink, and looked like an oversized baton, with tassels at both ends. "And what the hell does this do?"

"Try it and find out."

She muttered under her breath and assumed a stance, twirling the long baton. To her surprise, it was as nimble in her hands as her regular one and she had no problems doing any of her usual baton forms. Then she felt a curious urge, and used one end in an imaginary strike at a foe.

The tassels extended like a whip, cracking in mid air as a wave of force ripped across the field. She followed up with a rapid strike attack, additional waves of force shattering the air as she discovered that the heels she was wearing seemed to have no effects whatsoever on her normal acrobatics. No matter what she did, it was like they simply would not let her misstep. She finish off the imaginary opponent with a handstand, twirling her baton around one foot before doing a midair cartwheel and grabbing it out of the air.

"Wow," she murmured. "That was so incredibly easy. I did every move perfectly. It felt like I simply couldn't make a mistake."

"The henshin has boosted your agility enormously. I doubt you realized you were moving at a blur just then. Those attacks with the tassels were shockwaves from you breaking the sound barrier." Lo-Shen said dryly.

"Okay... That... was worth being in pink." She looked down at the uber cute dominatrix outfit and snorted. "Okay, it's cute. I could grow to like it," she admitted.

Lo-Shen giggled. "Just remember, dear, you're using my manna for power. With all seven of you henshined at once, you've got maybe a couple of hours at full power before you'll exhaust me. Less if I'm actively supporting you."

"Gotcha." She blushed. "What if I'm just wearing the outfit?"

Lo-Shen shook her head and chuckled. "And you said you hated pink."

Ai grinned sheepishly. "Alright, I lied. Sue me."

"Of course dear, who's next?"

Ayeka stepped forward. "Okay, let's see what it sticks me with."

Ayeka's henshin left her with a bustier like Ai's, but where hers had been pink and lacey, Ayeka's was black leather, the bow at her breast adorned with a skull at its center. Long gloves covered with ornate black metal plates graced her arms, and tall thigh high boots covered her legs, also covered in the black metal. The large bow at her back was black as well, the swallow tails appearing to be made of black chainmail. Heavy shoulder plates shaped like dragon heads covered her shoulders, while a horned tiara rested on her brow, their curled horns sweeping behind her head like the dragons on her shoulders. In her right hand, instead of a baton, she carried a gigantic two handed sword, orange fire burning along the edges. She looked down at herself and grinned a toothy grin.

"How appropriate. I look like a deathknight."

"A deathknight pinup you mean. I doubt a real deathknight would have that much skin exposed. It's very sexy though." Ai commented. "Makes me want to strip you out of it."

Ayeka giggled and knelt before her. "Your knight is at your command, mistress."

Ai offered her hand to be kissed. "I accept your oath of fealty, my undead minion. Now show me what you can do."

"Yes, mistress." She tested the swing of her sword a few times, then scratched her chin. "I would be better at this if I had something to fight."

Lo-Shen muttered a few phrases, and a semi-transparent copy of Ayeka assumed a stance in front of her. Ayeka grinned and took up her stance again. Then with a whirl of steel, she and her dopple were in full swing.

Ai's jaw dropped. "Damn, she is good with that thing."

Megumi nodded. "She's at least as good as Kuno. She won't join the Kendo club though. She just practices at home."

Kaede whistled. "No wonder she always ends up using her baton like a sword when she gets mad."

Ayeka leaped over her opponent's attack, throwing her blade like a shuriken as she did. It spun in a blazing arc through the dopple's neck before arcing back into her hand as she landed. She smiled.

"Did my mistress find her knight's performance satisfactory?"

Ai clapped. "Yes, she did. Now come here and kiss me for your reward!"

Megumi giggled as Ayeka complied. "Alright, I'll go next then."

Her outfit was similar to Ai's, in blue instead of pink, and it glittered as if coated in frost. She laughed as she looked at it. "We're all variations on a theme it seems."

Lo-Shen nodded. "Ai set the theme. The spell is using her as a template."

"I see." She looked down to the holsters on her hips. "Pistols. Interesting." She unholstered them and twirled them around her fingers. "No, not pistols. Ice guns. I haven't played with these since I was a kid."

"Need a target?" Lo-Shen asked.

"Can you give me a bunch?"

Lo-Shen waved her hand and several dozen targets filled the field. Megumi dodged as they all opened fire simultaneously. The guns in her hands fired repeatedly as she bobbed and weaved between the bullets seeking her, and it seemed with every shot, another target fell. She moved in a blur, moving like water between the bodies of her foes until she came to a stop behind the last target, her pistol at the back of it's skull. There was one last shot, the dopple turning to ice before shattering, and then Megumi walked through the frozen remains towards them. She twirled her guns again as she holstered them. "That was fun."

Ai smirked. "Impressive."

Megumi shrugged. "I used to be the ice tag champion in the Yuki-onna village before we moved to Tokyo. These guns seem to be a lot more powerful than the ice pellets we used for playing tag."

Kaede's outfit was a lot more revealing than the others, being made of transparent red lace. Only her bow kept it from showing her nipples, while the large bow in the rear kept her back just barely PG. She enjoyed showing it off for a minute or so before she blinked. "Hey, why didn't I get a weapon?"

Lo-Shen shrugged. "It's based on your natural abilities, dear. Do something succubus-y."

Kaede glared at her, muttering something under her breath. Then, she vanished.

They blinked. "What the hell?" Ai exclaimed, then jumped. "Hey, who goosed me!"

Kaede reappeared behind Ai. "Cool. I've always wanted to do that!" she giggled. "Okay. My illusion powers seem to be off the charts. I've never been able to go invisible before." She got a look of concentration on her face, and suddenly everybody turned into her clones. She giggled again. "Look. you're all me!"

"Yes, my sweet little succubus. You're going to be great for stealth. Any offensive powers?"

Kaede let them all return to normal appearance as she raised a hand. "Hummm. Now that I think about it..." Her hand glowed and a beam of light shot from it to burn into the field. "Light manipulation. It's what my illusion powers are basically. If I focus it properly, I can make lasers." She smiled. "Guess I don't really need a weapon. I am one."

Ai grinned. "Very cool." She looked over at Kyoko. "Next, my kawaii vixen."

Kyoko's henshin was easily the most dramatic. While her outfit was almost identical to Megumi's, in a more intense shade of blue, it was almost exactly the opposite as well. Where Megumi had been pale ice, Kyoko was blue fire. Her hair had changed from its normal cinnamon brown to azure blue, and her foxfire burned within it, as well as her tail. And she hadn't gotten pom-pom's after all, but a pair of batons burning with her blue flame. They had quickly confirmed she could use the batons both as close combat weapons as well as like shuriken, while simultaneously being able to hurl her foxfire as well. Both Ayeka and Megumi had volunteered to be her opponents, and the tiny fox girl had held her own against them both for several minutes before Ayeka had disarmed her. She grinned at the Kitsune as she stuck her sword in the ground. "Wow, you did awesome, Kyoko! That was amazing!"

The fox girl smiled shyly. "You really think so? But you beat me so easily."

Megumi laughed. "That was NOT easy, Kyoko-chan. I couldn't hit you once, even in the spots of you that aren't on fire."

"And with that dual wielding style, you're actually pretty tough. I bet if you got Zhu-chan to teach you, you'd be a champion in no time. You almost got me half a dozen times." She tousled Kyoko's burning hair. "You did good, my kawaii little fox." She pulled her hand back quickly and giggled. "Okay, note to self, your spirit flames get hot if I touch them long enough."

Kyoko giggled. "I'm sorry."

Ai stuck her hand in the flames. Kyoko looked at her worriedly. "Ai?"

Ai took her hand away from her hair. "No worries, my sweet vixen. They get hot, but they don't burn. I had to find out, because you are going to be wearing that form next time I get a chance to seduce you."

Kyoko blushed. Ai turned to Kodachi and Mousse. "Okay, which of you wants to go next?"

Mousse stood. "I will."

She marched out and henshined. Again, she resembled Ai's outfit, this time in white, but where their ribbons had all been a solid color, Mousse's was pure light. They glowed, wrapping her in a soft white aura that made her look truly angelic. And where their outfits had tight fitting gloves, Mousse's were wide belled sleeves, similar to her normal robe. She pushed her glasses up with one hand as she flung the other one out dramatically, dozens of chains flying out of her sleeve to impact all across the field like falling mortar shells. She nodded as she drew them back, and flapped her wings. Twenty feet above them, she crossed her arms as she lashed forwards with her wings, and a rain of feathers shot from them, like missiles arcing at high speed to impact against the shield on the far side of the field in a massive explosion. Then she vanished, reappearing at the far end of the field as she crashed face first into the shield. She picked herself up and felt around the grass until she found her glasses.

"Hey, you okay?" Ai called.

"I'm fine. I just misjudged how much space I needed to stop. I was moving much faster than I anticipated. That actually hurt a lot less than it normally does." She grinned sheepishly. "Don't worry. I'm kinda used to running into things."

Kodachi giggled. "Poor Mou-chan."

Mousse blurred again, then plowed into the grass at Kodachi's feet. She helped the girl up and dusted her off. "Be careful, Mou-chan. You know I hate it when you get your beautiful face dirty."

"I'm sorry, mistress. I'm having a hard time judging my speed. It seems to have increased enormously. This transformation will take some getting used to."

"You are quite beautiful this way though."

Mousse blushed. "Thank you, my love."

Kodachi kissed her, then stood up. "I suppose it is my turn." She stepped out to where they had all been henshining and called out "I invoke the contract!"

The light that swirled around her was not the same as it had been for the others. Where everyone else had been just a single color, Kodachi's was two. Red light swirled with a purple so dark it was nearly black around her, and obscured her from their sight. It also took much longer than any of their henshins had. Almost a full thirty seconds passed before the swirling aura dissipated and they all stared at the gymnast in shock.

Her outfit was still a match, the bustier in dark red striped vertically with black, black ribbons accenting red gloves and hose, with matching ribbons gracing her crimson shoes. Each ribbon also bore a scarlet red rose, while more roses accented the seam of her fuku, and several more were tucked into a bow that held her pony tail. Roses were still her theme after all, though they were no longer black.

But it wasn't the outfit that made them stare.

It was the small horns that poked through her hair just in front of her dog ears, the small bat wings sticking out her back, and the long spaded tail lashing behind her.

And, of course, the overwhelming wave of lust that poured from her.

Lo-Shen's jaw snapped shut with a click. She muttered a long string of gibberish as a choker appeared around Kodachi's throat, and the irresistible urge they all had to drag the girl off for a few weeks of sex vanished. Kaede swallowed hard.

"Jeezus. She's stronger than me, mom, and Yuri put together!"

Kodachi looked puzzled. "Why is everyone looking like that at me?"

Lo-Shen chuckled as she shook her head. "A miscalculation on my part dear. That's all. It seems your henshin activated your latent succubus side. That choker is a binding to restrain your aura until we teach you how to control it." She took a deep breath and blew it out. "I should have realized you were simply maturing late, and not merely assumed you had not inherited them at all. The later many youkai mature into their full powers, the more powerful they often are. Be thankful we were shielded and that I retained enough presence of mind to cast a spell. Unleashed suddenly like you were, you could have drained the entire school in moments, entirely by accident."

Kodachi was looking in amazement at her small wings and the heart spaded end of her tail. "I- I have wings?"

Kaede grinned. "Yup. Welcome to the sisterhood, imouto-chan."

"But- but, I am an Inu!"

"You're both, sweetie."

"But I don't want to be like my mother!" Kodachi wailed.

Mousse hugged her. "You won't be, mistress. Your mother was a Chaosian. You have sworn to live by the Accord. And you have also sworn to uphold the honor of the Amazons. We will never allow you to be evil again."

Lo-Shen shook her head. "Exactly, Miss Kuno. In fact, we're going to take care of that right now."

"We- we are?"

Lo-Shen nodded. "Luna, Artemis, I need you to bear witness. You're old enough for the council to accept you as valid witnesses."

"Of course, Loremistress." Luna nodded.

Lo-Shen used her walking stick to quickly draw a circle in light on the field. She had Kodachi stand in it as she drew more symbols in the air. The girls around Ai gasped as it took form.

"That's the oath of binding" Ayeka said softly. "I remember when they cast it on me."

They solemnly observed as Lo-Shen finished the spell, and stood before Kodachi. She took Kodachi's hand.

"Kodachi Kuno. I know you were never properly inducted into youkai society, but this is a ceremony that every youkai has gone through at their coming of age. Today, it seems you also have come of age, and manifested your true powers as a youkai. You stand now within a circle of binding, and I must ask you to swear the oaths which all those who live by the accord must swear. Do you understand, and accept the necessity?"

"Yes, Loremistress."

The circle flashed.

"Next, you are a daughter of the House of Kuno, descendant of the founder, heir to the legacy of Inuyasha. You bear both the blood of his noble clan, the Inu, and the blood of the clan of sisters, the Succubi. Do you acknowledge this?"

Kodachi bit her lip, but nodded. "I do."

"As a member of the clan of sisters, do you swear to never harm a human, excepting only in the direst case of self defense? To take nothing from any non-consenting individual, and to feed only on those who give their willing acceptance?"

Kodachi swallowed. "I do so swear, Loremistress."

"And do you swear to live by the accord, peacefully, alongside humanity, as one of them?"

"With all my heart, I do so swear."

The circle around her swirled and shrunk into her, vanishing. Lo-Shen smiled at her. "Heard and witnessed, my child. Be welcome to both the society of Youkai, and to the society of mankind."

Kyoko dove in to give her a hug. "Wai! You're officially one of us now!"

Ai wiped a tear from her eye. "Congratulations." She looked at Lo-Shen. "I don't suppose a mere human could take that oath, could they?"

Her girlfriends turned to look at her in shock. Lo-Shen smiled. "It's certainly not a requirement. But I don't see any reason why not."

"But, Ai? Why?" Ayeka asked uncertainly.

Ai looked at her and smiled. "I'm a monster, my dear vampiress. It's entirely unfair you get to share in something I don't, now isn't it?" She took a deep breath. "I am a wife to four lovely youkai. I want to be a youkai too, even if it's only honorary."

Lo-Shen chuckled. "I could always make it a marriage ceremony too, you know."

Ai grinned. "I would love that, but we're too young, aren't we?"

"I'm an Amazon elder. Do you think I really give a damn about silly Japanese laws? Not even the Director would dare to raise an objection if I officiate."

Ai looked around at her girlfriends. And they were in such lovely wedding dresses too. She grinned hugely. "Whatcha say girls? I'm in."

Kyoko smiled dreamily. "We- we can really do this?"

Lo-Shen nodded. "Of course you can. I'm the Loremaster. I officiate at all the Amazon's weddings. Besides, the bonds between you five will be that much more powerful with a marriage oath backing it. And a marriage I officiate at will never be broken. No matter what happens, your marriage will survive. An Amazon marriage is for life."

Kodachi smiled. "I'll be the bridesmaid, and Mou-chan can be the best man!"

"I am not going to turn male wearing this outfit." Mousse protested.

Ai laughed. "Who cares if the best man is female. So is the groom."

The cats were rolling their eyes. "I suppose you need us as witnesses again?" Artemis asked.

Luna shook her head. "This should be held in a proper setting, not an athletic field."

Kaede grinned, and suddenly they were surrounded by a massive gothic cathedral. "This better?"

Ayeka looked around and laughed. "That's an awful lot of gargoyles, Kaede."

Megumi hooked her arm through Ai's. "This is very spur of the moment. Are you sure you won't regret this?"

Ai looked at her. "Will you?"

Megumi smiled and shook her head. "Never."

"There's your answer." Ai turned to look at her squad. "I am a monster. I will take the same oath as all of you and prove it. In return, my lovely vampire, my elegant snow maiden, my sexy succubus, and my fiery vixen, I beg you all for the privilege of your hands in marriage. Will you become my brides?"

Ayeka latched onto her other arm and turned her around to where Lo-Shen had drawn a new circle. She gave Ai a toothy grin. "What, do you really think we're going to let you escape after you've gone this far?"

Ai smiled as they led her forward. "I would certainly hope not."

0

Across Tokyo, eight different portals stood surrounded by machinery. The identical girls had vanished once the assembly had been completed, and now other forms had replaced them.

They were in all shapes and sizes, except that of human. At each portal, more than fifty creatures awaited the fall of night.

Yes. The night was their time. They would remind the humans of this world of that fact. Tonight.

Tonight, the devils would come out to play...

_Author's Notes: Well, I seem to be back in stride and writing at full steam ahead. Might as well enjoy it while I can. Hope you do as well._


	7. Chapter Six: Devil's Night

Chapter Six: Devil's Night

Like always, when she had no guests, it was dark.

It's not like there was a point to having light anyway. Nothing had changed in 2000 years. Well there was more salt sand build up, but that certainly wasn't something she really cared to look at.

She was setting at her tea table, head resting on her many arms, crying, like she always did when she was alone. It might have been hours since Urd and Mara had left, it might have been days. There was no way to tell in the dark. Besides, time here was disconnected from the outside world. Sometimes years passed in here while mere days passed in the world of humanity, sometimes time stood still for decades. It was better when that happened. Entire centuries could sometimes pass in a night.

She could have been passing the time spying on the world, but all her soulmates were a thousand years and a universe away. The human world without them held absolutely no interest. She might have forgiven them for the horrors she had endured, might have sought redemption for the evil she had inflicted against them in return. She might even pity the poor creatures. But in 3000 years, nothing about them had changed. They couldn't change, and never would unless the future she had sacrificed everything for could be achieved.

She sighed. Did Ukyo even remember her? The last time she had been able to observe the chef, she had been oblivious to her past self. While it was an encouraging sign that she had somehow summoned her armor, it was no guarantee that she had accessed the particular memories that related to her. Ukyo might have remembered only her marriage to Lin Tzu, or random memories of her life as Lin's Guardian.

So here she sat... alone... in the dark. How many centuries had she passed this way?

She didn't even have the excuse of pretending to examine Mara's coding to occupy her anymore. She'd given her report on it to Mara to give to Lind. And who knew how many years it would be before Lind could take the time to come and play chess.

In fact, she was so busy moping, she almost didn't notice when something actually happened.

It took awhile before she finally realized the worldnode was requesting her attention. It had logged an access request. Several of them in fact. But they were so garbled, it couldn't tell where they were originating. All it could tell was that an authorized node was seeking to connect to the Midgard worldnet.

But, there shouldn't have been any active nodes still in service.

Six monitors materialized in the air in front of her as she blinked the tears from her eyes, one hand feeling around for her handkerchief while two more tapped on the glowing keys that appeared on the table. By the time she had wiped the tears away, she was using her other three hands to access multiple secondary keypads, linking the sole node she still remained sysop of to her secret connection to Yggdrasil. With Yggy's help, she soon determined that the request was so garbled because it was very weak and distorted due to the fact it had multiple sources, and they were all out of sync.

Twenty minutes of analysis, and the application of several hundred filters later, she had been able to clear up the signal sufficiently to be able to tell it was originating from eight separate locations in Tokyo, but those were just reflections from the origin. The fact that they were out of sync, the signal being delayed from the various sources by milliseconds probably indicated that the various reflection points were different distances from the original source.. Yggy's analysis suggested that the signals were being reflected through some sort of dimensional gate from a single source on the far side. An additional thirty minutes of analysis, and a consultation with Phoenixmoon, and she whistled as they finally managed to decode the logon request entirely.

She had no idea how it was possible, but somehow an active Yggdrasil Seed AI node was trying to connect to the Worldnet. It was sending connection requests every five seconds, over a long range hyperspace frequency reserved for the old Imperial Fleet, using a priority request protocol reserved for Lin Tzu's personal use. The signal was bouncing through the gate from the Seed, wherever it was on the far side.

"Can we even send an acknowledgement or establish two way communication?" she asked no-one in particular. Yggdrasil and Phoenixmoon took it as a request anyway, and began to analyze the possibility.

0

Urd looked at the slim, black-clad butler with a puzzled look on her face. She looked back down at her notes again, then over to Mara, who was observing the dark young man from a rooftop with her.

"Okay, I can see quite clearly from Phoenixmoon's notes that this Raijin Hasai is a fantastic match for Miss Kino. If it hadn't been for Kodachi screwing things up for them, they'd still be a couple. What I don't get is why I can't even remember this guy being in the notes previously. I could have sworn her "Senpai" was named Freddy or something, and I don't remember their relationship as being anywhere near this intense or complicated, just your run of the mill schoolgirl crush, and a broken heart when he decided to date Kodachi over her."

Mara gave her an "I don't know" shrug. "Phoenixmoon did make a point of saying that the timequake had left some major alterations in the timeline. Could it be that he's only existed since the quake?"

Urd frowned. "It's possible. His last name sounds really familiar, though."

Mara nodded. "Of course it does. Ano Hasai was the old guy that Peorth gave the wish to at the club, remember?" She came over and rubbed Urd's shoulders. "The timequake was a direct occurrence from that wish, so it's quite feasible that the entire Hasai family was drastically affected by the granting of the wish."

"True." Urd looked at his notes again. "He's got a mishmash of youkai blood in him, the most recent being his grandmother, who was a spider. He's likely got some interesting youkai abilities, but that damn program completely forgot to include a rundown on them. He's following in the family tradition of serving as a Butler to a select group of families. His grandfather works for the Director. His father was intended to be the Hibiki's butler, but died three years ago in a car crash. He's assumed the family obligation, and taken the position even though he's still in highschool. Practically begged Old Muhashi to allow him to begin his service the day after Tao-Ching took his little trip. Huh. Looks like he was already in town a week before, already setting up his transfer to Furinkan, moving his stuff from Kyoto. I'd almost guess he was waiting, like he knew Tao-Ching was going to be going back in time."

Mara shrugged. "Makes sense if the Hasai clan viewed his service as repayment for Tao-Ching fulfilling the wish."

"Yeah, I suppose. That little scene he made with Kodachi at lunch was kinda weird though. I couldn't tell what he felt for her. I hope it doesn't spell trouble for getting him hooked back up with Jupiter."

"At least we have a prospect for her. We don't even have any leads on Mercury or Venus yet, or who their happy ending is supposed to be with."

Urd sighed. "Don't remind me." She stood straight and turned away from the roof's edge toward the access door. "Come on, let's go home. My head is pounding, and I just don't feel like being out and about tonight."

Mara nodded, looking out over the city. "Yeah, know what you mean. I can't put a finger on it, but something really feels weird. The whole city feels off. It's making my skin crawl."

Urd nodded, taking a last look across the cloudless sky. "It feels like a storm is coming," she muttered before exiting through the door.

0

The tall blue haired youkai gave Emeraude a glare as he strode towards the throne. Once, he might have almost passed for human, even with the slit pupiled eyes and cat ears that adorned his skull, but the metal that formed half his face made that impossible now. The whir of gears could be distinctly heard as he came to a stop before the throne and bowed.

"The portals are complete, and the reavers are waiting for full dark, Lord Wiseman."

Xi'an Chi's implacable mask rose from where he had been petting the black dragoness to look at the cyborg. "Have they been briefed on their mission?"

"Of course, my lord. They are to slaughter everyone they encounter to create the Circle of Blood. Each troop will leave the node they are at in approximately four more hours and follow their set path to the next node. Once they have created the circle, they will proceed to secure the Tokyo tower region in preparation for stage two."

"And Demande's command?"

"They are also prepared. Their ships will land around Crystal Tokyo in sync with my troops in the other world. They will annihilate the remaining humans and secure the Palace. Demande intends to seize Serenity's crystal and slaughter the remaining inhabitants."

There was a chuckle. "Of course. Let the fool have his playtoy. All he need do is spill sufficient blood."

The cyborg grinned. "My fool of a brother will be quite surprised to find himself included in the sacrifice. Pity I will not get to see the look on his face."

"Ahh, of all the flavors of hate, that which exists between siblings is always so fascinating."

"What of your playtoys, my lord."

"Have our agents ensure that they are all aboard our little trap and underway within the next three hours. It would not do to allow them to accidently die before I have finished extracting every last drop of suffering from them for my sweet little pet."

Saphir clicked his heels and bowed before turning to relay his master's orders.

0

Tao-Ching and the senshi had examined the crystal in which Serenity was encased for over an hour, but it was of no use. Ami's computer couldn't get readings on it, and none of their attacks had even scratched the surface, not even Usagi's Haliation. They were back in the guest quarters discussing their options when an officer for the palace guard arrived.

"You're pardon sir, but we've been requested by Lady Pluto to deliver supplies to the vessel that you will be using. Unfortunately we're very short handed. May I beg for your assistance? I have only a three man squad to oversee a half dozen supply vehicles. We have had some issues with rogue elements in the city looting improperly supervised supply shipments. I would feel much better with your protection, my lord."

Tao-Ching looked over at Ranma and shrugged. "We might as well all go. I was thinking about heading that way soon anyway. This way we got a ride."

Ranma looked at Akane, who nodded. "Sure. They've had a couple of hours to check it out. I'd like to see what it looks like now that I'm not yawning my head off."

"Yeah, getting to see a real artifact from the Silver Millennium sounds neat!" Usagi chimed in. "I'm bored sitting around here with nothing to do."

Nabiki stood up. "I'll get Clove and the others."

The guard bowed. "Lady Konatsu, Lady Clove, and Lady Kanna left with Miss Mu about an hour ago, at Lady Ukyo's request. They should already be at the ship, Lady Nabiki." The guard scratched his head. "It was rather confusing. They borrowed a single driver and a large flatbed, in order to have room for the twenty or so Lady Konatsu's." He sounded quite bewildered.

Akane laughed. "Sounds like she's gone Naruto again. I seriously need to get her to teach me that trick."

"Nyah. Great-grandmother not even teach Shan-Pu how make shadow-clone yet, mrrrrr."

Tao-Ching laughed as they followed the guard out the door. "I'm not sure how I'd feel about a dozen of you, little cousin. You might give me a case of terminal nosebleed with that many cat girls all at once."

Shan-Pu gave her cousin the evil eye. "Hentai," she purred, only mildly chastising.

Nabiki gave her smug grin. "Yup. Just the way I like him."

0

Ying-Ying was waiting for them on the upper deck when Clove and Konatsu had arrived with Mu and Kanna. Konatsu had allowed all but one of her clones to poof when they had arrived, and was walking next to Clove when they came into the view of the ghost girl. Her blue eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh my god! Ko-chan! You're separated!"

Konatsu waved as she shook her head. "No. Clove and I are still right here!" she said, pointing at Clove's head cheerfully. "But Clove gave me a wonderful suggestion. I can let her run the body, while I control a shadow clone!"

"So you're projecting a clone? But you look so solid!"

Konatsu grinned. "I'm borrowing Clove's manna. She's got so much I could make a thousand of me!"

Clove giggled. "Let's not get carried away, dear. I have no idea how quickly that many clones would drain me unconscious."

Ying-Ying threw her arms around the clone. "Still, this is wonderful!" She slipped between Clove and Konatsu and wrapped an arm around each. "Now I can hug you twice!"

"This is ship Mu see in head. Is mistress going to lock in small room with chair now?"

They all blinked. Clove slipped out of Ying-Ying's grasp to pat the diminutive girl on the head. "No honey. No-one is going to lock you in a small room. I promise."

Mu looked at her with wide trusting eyes and nodded. "Thank you mistress. Mu does not like small room." She blinked, mystical circles beginning to swirl in her eyes. "Mu go on standby now."

The gem in her forehead glowed as the lines along her skin flared into light. "Yggdrasil Seed 0000879 active. Link to all ship systems active. Initiating full diagnostics. Diagnostics complete. All systems functional. Main power supplies at 89%. Weapon's systems fully operational, energy reserves optimal. Imperial Vessel Mu-San fully functional." Her eyes lifted to where Uyko was emerging from the hatch. She saluted. "Greetings Commander Guardian. I am the Imperial Command and Control Tactical Warship Mu-San. We are at your command.

Ukyo raised an eyebrow as she returned the salute. "You were christened the _Zhulong_."

Mu bowed. "That is correct Commander. This unit has been symbiotically merged with the entity designated Mu-san. We are no longer the _Zhulong_. All ships identification codes have been reset to the name Mu-san."

"Under who's order?"

"Unknown. All data between Silver Millennium date Jun 10 1023 to present have been deleted. Internal sensor logs indicate this unit has been in stasis and separated from this vessel for 967 years. No other data remains as to where this unit has been during the missing timeframe."

"I see. Do you recognize me?"

"According to my owner, you are the reincarnation of my designer and first commander, Song Orihime, the Dragon's Guardian. My records indicate you were last aboard me five weeks prior to my last complete logs. You deployed me to Mars to await transferral of command to Princess Ares, Lady Phoenix, as her personal vessel. I arrived on Mars, and was transferred to the Royal Docks. All subsequent records deleted."

"Your owner?"

"Yes commander. This unit is owned by Princess Clove Draconis of the Musk. She has commanded me to follow your orders as my captain and commander, Lady Guardian."

Ukyo shook her head. "Well you're acting normally for a ships core, other than being part of Mu's body. I really wish I had some way to see what other tampering might have been done," she said as she turned back towards the hatch.

"No tampering to AI core detected. All harmonic codes are in order. Kernel protection systems are intact. I am as Goddess Sarhia wrote me. No core functions have suffered intrusion, only external interfaces and secondary systems."

Ukyo turned back to her so fast her neck nearly snapped. "What did you just say?"

"No tampering to AI core detec-"

"No, no, about who wrote you!"

"I am as Goddess Sarhia wrote me. Yggdrasil Seed Core Ai designate 0000879 was written by Goddess Sarhia on Silver Millennium Date Layue 10 1011 and assigned to the Midgard WorldNet for general purpose use as a naval warship core. I was chosen for the _Zhulong_ core on Silver Millen-"

"Never mind that. You are saying you were written Sarhia?"

"That is correct. I was written by Goddess, First Class, Sarhia. Sysop of Midgard World net."

Ying-Ying was looking at Ukyo. "Could it really have been her? Is it possible another Sarhia-"

Ukyo chuckled. "No. It's her. She always used to joke about her "interim job" while she was in custody. I just didn't know she programmed Yggdrasil Seeds. No-one in the Federation had the skill to craft them. It was one of the 'issues' the High King had with Serenity. The Kingdom of the Moon was the sole supplier for them. They were the only Kingdom with a functional transdimensional gate and trade agreements with Asgard."

Ying-Ying nodded. "Kami-sama told me that the treatment of the Seeds by the Kingdoms of Earth is one of the primary reasons he has prohibited trade between realms. They were intended to be assistants, not slaves."

Ukyo sighed heavily. "Yeah. One more reason to find a way to remove that collar and free Mu, as well as the Seed."

She turned back to Mu. "Will you follow me to bridge?"

Mu bowed again. "Of course commander. I would ask to make one request, for Mu."

Ukyo raised an eyebrow. "Of course."

"Please do not close the door to our interface chamber. Mu does not like being locked inside."

Ukyo nodded. "Come on. I'll tear the goddamn door out of the frame for you."

0

While tearing the door out was impractical, Ukyo did the next best thing and sliced it flush with the frame using _Wrathseeker_. She had the soldiers take it out to dispose of as Mu took the seat nervously.

It became clear why the idea of having the door closed would have been a bad idea the moment she sat down, as the seed transferred its primary awareness to the ship, leaving Mu in control of the body. She wandered the bridge freely as Ukyo verified the ship was functional, the Seed's interface cable trailing behind her like a long silver tail emerging from her lower spine. So long as they made sure not to step on it, the curious girl seemed to forget all about it.

By the time the others arrived an hour later, they had already become comfortable with her presence on the bridge, and the novelty of Konatsu roaming the ship independently in a clone had worn off. It actually took Ranma ten minutes to realize that Clove was sitting on the bridge with Mu, examining the collar, while Konatsu was showing them around the ship she had just finished exploring.

Ukyo had looked askance at the week's worth of supplies that had been delivered from the palace, but shrugged when the guard leading the squad had told her it had been by Pluto's orders. They had it loaded within a half hour, and by the time they had finished, Ukyo was satisfied they were space worthy. She put in a call to the Palace, and was answered by Holo Ami.

"Is the ship functional?" she asked Ukyo when they connected.

"Yeah. Everything seems to be fully functional. I am about to take her for a shakedown flight."

Holo Ami nodded. "I- I know that it is not exactly your responsibility, but it would be of great value to us if you could perform some reconnaissance as well. With the loss of our fleet, we are effectively blind as to Blackmoon's movements. Any data you could acquire could aid me in determining what defense we may be able to make."

"No problem. We'll take a-"

The holo went fuzzy as a massive explosion lit the skyline visible through the skylight. "What the fuck was that!"

"My sensors indicate the city in which this vessel is currently located is under orbital bombardment. I detect five cruiser sized ships in high orbit dropping solid mass projectiles. Configuration unrecognized."

Ukyo looked at the spiky vessel displayed in the hologram "Ugly things aren't they?"

"That's what Rubeus's ship looked like. It's definitely Blackmoon." Clove supplied.

Another explosion rocked the city, this one closer.

"Commander, I recommend evasive action. The fall pattern is rapidly approaching this location."

"Get us prepped for flight!"

"Affirmative Commander." The ships comm crackled to life. "Attention to all non crew, This vessel is departing in two minutes. Please clear the ship!"

A third explosion was close enough to see the actual fireball. Ukyo looked at the shaky holo of the Ami at the Palace. "We're taking off. We'll do something about those ships. Keep the palace defended. We'll be back!"

Tao-ching burst onto the bridge. "The soldiers are clear, and the hold hatch is secured. Where do you need me?"

She pointed to a station. "Main fire control!" She looked over as the rest came tumbling in. "Rei! That central station is yours. Usagi! Left bay window! Ami, right! Makoto, Mina take the remaining two stations. Everybody else hold on!"

Ukyo grabbed the two joysticks that rose up out of the command chair's armrests, and pushed them forward gently. The ship shuddered slightly as they moved forward, then tilted upwards as she headed them for the skylight. "Brace for impact!"

The skylight shattered as the dragon's head smashed through, and then they were in clear air. Ukyo pushed the joysticks full forward as to her right a small holo of the ship unfurled her wings. Just in time as the rearview display filled with a fireball as the museum vanished.

Ranma looked over from where he had grabbed a hold of the door frame to brace himself. "You got any places for us?"

"Yeah, Deck Four! You should find about a dozen defense stations! Take your pick. Konatsu! Can you take any that we don't have people for? They're simple. Just point and pull the trigger."

Her clone nodded as Clove stood, ready to follow the others. "Don't go anywhere, Clove. Keep working on that damn collar! We could be in serious hot water if Xi'an Chi has some way to control this ship through her!"

She nodded as everyone else left the bridge. Ukyo nodded. "Okay girls, this ship was built with you in mind. Ami, you're at the shield station. Those two large crystals can absorb your bubble blast and use it as an enhanced shield. The ships main shields can handle energy weapons, but if you see anything like a missile or a rock, stop it. Usagi, you are at the ships damage control station. See that holo of the ship? It will show anywhere we've taken damage. You should see a slot in the console under it. That's for your Moon Rod. You can use you powers to repair the ship. Makoto, Mina, you're both solidly attack positions. You can launch your attacks directly at any target you see in your displays. Tao-Ching, that's the overall weapon's command and control. You have a 720 degree Heads up Display. Tell everyone where to shoot. Rei, that seat drops down into the mouth. It's specifically made to power up your Phoenix form. You are this ship's primary weapon. Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it's the truth. We built this thing to boost you to damn near god level attack capacity. You can one shot anything smaller than the Tianlong."

Rei smiled. "I don't mind being a weapon for a just cause, my darling chef. Point me and shoot."

"Remind me to kiss you later."

"You'd better."

"They've filled the defense stations. Ying-Ying, Ranma, Shan-Pu and Akane are on forwards 1 through 4, Nabiki , Kuno, Kagura and the Konatsu's are in 5 through 12." Tao-Ching reported. "Okay, Kagura, this is really simple. There's a big red x on that glass panel right in front of you, see it? Okay, if you move those two sticks, that x will move too. Put that x on an enemy and push on those red buttons. That's all you gotta do."

Ukyo smiled. "A youkai windwitch from the Sengoku era, in a gun turret. Even I'm having trouble believing it."

She looked over to where Clove was intently studying the collar, while Mu set with Kanna sedately occupying her lap, looking as calm as she ever did. Mu was hugging her, which seemed to be helping her stay calm too.

She looked back at her displays. "Alright, leaving atmosphere in thirty seconds, in range of those bombing ships in two minutes."

Ranma's chuckle came over the intercom. "Yeah, let's do this!"

0

"Can you believe it! We're actually all wives now!" Kyoko gushed as they settled around their usual balcony table at the Club.

Kaede was examining the silver and ruby ring on her finger. "I love these rings Lo-Shen summoned up. I know it's supposed to be gold and diamonds, but I love the color of these rubies!"

Ai chuckled. "Hey, gothic style suits all of us better anyway." She lifted her soda. "Here's to the merry monster wives of Furinkan high!"

They giggled as they shared in the toast. Ayeka's eyes gleamed. "And to the substitute Senshi!"

"Here here!"

Ai looked around the table, stopping at the newly winged succubus across the table. "Hey, Dachi-chan. It just occurred to me, we kinda got so carried away, we never did get to see your weapon."

Kodachi smiled sheepishly. "It was kind of a strange weapon. I was expecting a ribbon, but all I got was a very large long stemmed rose."

"A rose, huh. Well you got to admit it does suit you. Wonder what it does?"

Kodachi shook her head. "I never actually tried it. I got so caught up in the oath ceremony, and then I got to play bridesmaid for you."

"You and Mousse should have let Lo-Shen marry you too!"

"No. I would have loved to, but I promised my Uncle I would behave more responsibly. He told me that if I can show him I am involved in a true relationship, he will approve my marriage to Mousse. Considering my past, I cannot fault him for it. He has said if I remain with Mousse for one year, he will pay for a grand western style wedding for us, even if we are both wearing gowns."

"I said I will be happy to wear a Tuxedo if they can simply accommodate my wings." Mousse groused. "I would even change to male for the ceremony if you didn't insist you wish to marry me as a female."

Kodachi shook her head. "No. I want to marry my Mousse. You will not be Mu-Si for our wedding!"

The tenshi sighed, but it was obvious she was far from unhappy. "But of course, my darling demoness."

Ai laughed. "That settles it. We're going to be singing _Akuma to Tenshi no Kiss_ for your wedding reception!"

Kodachi giggled, then yawned hugely. "I must admit you did a fantastic job singing DISCOTHEQUE, but I fear the last several hours of partying to celebrate your marriage has exhausted me."

"Awwww. Bummer. It's a school night, so we've all got to go to separate houses." Ai sighed. "We really got to do something about getting jobs so we can get our own place."

Kodachi smiled. "Surely your parents won't object to my inviting you all to stay at my house tonight, will they? I would never deny newlyweds their wedding night bliss."

"Really?"

"Absolutely. With just me, Mousse and Sasuke, the mansion is so empty. You can have the entire east wing and make as much noise as you like."

Ai was reaching for her cell when her earring chirruped.

"Okay girls. Ready or not, suit up."

"Huh?" Ai said intelligently to hearing Lo-Shen's voice in her ear.

"We've got trouble. Luna and Artemis have readings of some massive energy spikes around Tokyo, and the news is showing what looks to be fires, and some rather big and nasty youkai on a rampage."

Ai paled. "Jeezus. We're not ready for this!"

"You're all we got, dear. I'm sorry, but people are dying. Get changed and head about a mile east. That's the closest group, and they are heading straight for Furinkan."

Fifteen seconds later, the entire club was staring in shock as a pack of magical girls landed on the dance floor and raced out the door.

0

"Missiles incoming from the lower left quadrant!" Ami cried.

"I see em!" Ranma called back. Streaks of red erupted from below the view ports as he opened fire.

"Small craft coming up behind us, looks like fighters, Ko 1, Ko 2, they should be in your view!" Tao-Ching directed, his chair swiveling in response to his eyes moving around the holographic globe surrounding him. "Akane, you've got some coming in from your sector as well!"

"I'm on it. Looking!"

"Remind me to teach all of you about 3d co-ordinate targeting when we get a chance!"

Ukyo spiraled around a group of beam attacks as she closed in on the first vessel. "Rei, you about ready?"

"Charged up and ready when you are."

"Fire!"

Rei's particle beam leaped through the darkness to slam into the crystal ship, which flared into a ball of fire. The ship next to it was jarred sideway, directly into a Crescent Beam Shower. Explosions erupted from a dozen spots as Ukyo dodged debris from the first one. "How long till you recharge, Rei?"

"Less than I thought. Give me thirty seconds!"

"You got it." She rolled to bring the nose to bear on the damaged vessel. "Mako! Mina! Take it down!"

The ship shattered as both a Thunder Dragon and a Crescent Beam impacted it. Ukyo rolled through a formation of fighters as the scarlet beams from the defense cannons criss-crossed the darkness.

"Long range sensors detecting an additional ten vessels incoming." The ship reported.

"How long do we have, _Zhulong_?"

"About ten minutes until they are in firing range, Commander. And may I remind you, I am the Mu-San now?"

"Later! Just deal with it for the moment!"

"Acknowledged commander."

Mercury cried out as her bubble shield took the missile Ying-Ying had missed. "Damage negated, Uc-chan!"

Makoto added her thunder attack to the cannon fire on the port side, and explosions lit the night as an entire fighter wing disintegrated. Ukyo dodged the main cannon on the ship she was sighting in on as she called out. "You about ready, my firebird?"

Another Ground Zero gave her the answer as the Blackmoon vessel ceased to exist.

Ukyo sped through the fireball, already locked on to the next vessel. "Everyone who can, concentrate your fire!"

They narrowly missed the last ship's main cannon as the targeted ship rocked under the combined attacks of four defense turrets and Mina and Makoto. Ukyo was already past it as dozens of secondary explosions rocked it, and the last ship accidently shot as it tried to target them. Ukyo glanced over to Clove, who had encased herself and Mu in a glowing shield bubble and was floating in place as the ship twisted and rolled around her. Her eyes were closed as she focused on the collar around Mu's neck.

Then a pink bubble surrounded the ship momentarily. Ukyo blinked, then remembered. "What was that, Nabiki?"

"A damn rock that ship tossed at us!" she snarled. "Now I am mad! Blow that bastard up, Rei!"

"Give me ten more seconds and a clear shot!"

"Clear shot coming up, dearheart."

She sighed and took a deep breath as the last ship died. "Okay folks, you got five before the next wave gets here. Smoke em if you got em."

"Actually commander, it is still seven minutes until the new vessels will be in range."

Ukyo looked up at the roof in disgust. "Right."

0

Kodachi stood on the roof looking at the weapon her henshin had given her. It looked like a large, long stemmed rose, made of metal. There was a handle next to the flower, but it was odd. It only felt comfortable when she held it with the stem forward, and the flower below her hand. And the long stem was segmented, each segment bearing four "thorns". It was as strong as steel too, and about three feet long.

She looked down to where the other girls had already started to engage the youkai who appeared determined to kill everything in sight. She needed to get down there fast.

She looked at the weapon again. It looked so damn familiar too. She knew she had seen something like it before. She gripped it firmly, like she would have her ribbon baton, and noticed something. Her thumb was resting on what felt like a button. Curious, she pressed it.

With a clank, the "stem" fell apart.

She looked at the suddenly much more familiar weapon in her hand now, the individual segments spaced about a foot apart along a chain, and grinned.

"How very appropriate, a Rose Whip."

With a gleeful giggle, she lashed out to wrap the end around a fire-escape and swung down to join the fray.

0

Ayeka had charged in sword swinging, without the slightest hesitation. Ai and Megumi were close behind.

"Shit, what kind of youkai are these? I don't recognize half these species!" Ai yelled as she sent a creature that looked like a skeletal centipede flying.

"Thats because over half of them are species that refused to join the accord!" Megumi yelled back. "Watch yourself, most of them are poisonous!"

A line of explosions went down the street as Mousse streaked by in a strafing run. She barely pulled up in time to fly up the face of the building at the end of the street in a streak of blazing white. Kyoko was perched on an awning, using her batons in shuriken form to knock down several of the creatures who could crawl along the face of the buildings. Kaede hovered overhead, glowing bolts shooting down drive creatures back to cover the three in the thick of things.

Then a madly giggling Kodachi dropped in to land on a lightpole in a dramatic pose. "Now villains you shall feel the thorns of Kodachi, The Red Rose of Furinkan!" Her whip lashed out to toss one of the creatures attacking Ayeka flying.

Ai blinked. "Is that what I think it is?"

Megumi shot the creature about to strike Ai freezing it in place. "Yeah, it's Ivy's Alraune. Goggle at it later!"

Ai dodged under a scythe-like weapon and lashed out at its owner, the shock wave smashing it into a nearby wall. She growled. "Dammit, I know magical girls aren't supposed to actually kill, but these thing want our heads!"

"Then kill them back, Ai." Lo-Shen said over the earrings. "This isn't an anime, and I am an Amazon elder. This is an order. You are authorized to terminate. These things have shown no mercy! They deserve none!"

Ayeka chuckled. "You mean that boss? We're bound to only kill in self defense."

"You are defending every single human and youkai these things are trying to slaughter and avenging those they already have. Every one you leave alive will kill someone else. Obey your oath. Kill them. Kill them all!" Lo-Shen's voice was tight with anger.

Ayeka's grin was scary as her eyes began to burn. "Mistress, your deathknight awaits your command."

"You heard her, my minion. Start leaving corpses."

That made things much easier. Ai's baton became a blur as she stopped pulling her punches and Ayeka's glowing blade let a trail of blood. As the pair waded down the street, Megumi leaped to a fire escape to rain ice down around them, while Kaede burned paths down the street. Kodachi looked uncertain as she bit her lip. "Are are you certain, Lo-Shen?"

There was a crackle over the earrings. Then a male voice cut in. "Kodachi! Stop this at once! You are a Kuno."

She blinked. "Uncle?"

"Yes, Kodachi. All of you. This is Director Shesshomaru. As of this second you are authorized agents of the Youkai council. Until we can mount a counter offensive, you're the strongest defense we have in the field. I don't know where these Chaosians sprang from, but they are killing everyone. Over a thousand are dead as of this moment. This must end. Follow Lo-Shen's command. Leave none alive."

Kodachi nodded. "Understood, Uncle. I will do my duty as a Kuno," she acknowledged sadly.

She lashed out at a creature trying to leap for her as she stepped forward off the pole. Her whip retracted, along with its head. She landed on the street, glistening trails below eyes as cold as ice.

Brightly colorful, in lace and ribbons, death began to stalk the streets of Nerima.

_Author's notes: See, told you I was on a roll._


	8. Chapter Seven: Escalation

Chapter Seven: Escalation

Kodachi was in serious trouble. They had been forced to separate in order to deal with all the scattered groups, and she and Mousse had been doing well against the group they'd been assigned to, until they had encountered this rock giant. Mousse's feathers had been doing damage, until the nearsighted girl had misjudged and crashed into the massive form.

She was standing over her unconscious angel, but try as she might, her whip was having little effect against its rocky form. And it was not giving her the time to grab Mousse and run.

She flinched as its massive fist came down towards her, raising her whip desperately as she retracted it to its closed form in a forlorn hope that she could somehow manage to block the unstoppable object.

But it didn't come. She opened one eye to peek as she heard the rock creature growl.

The massive creature was straining, but unable to move. Dozens of black strands wrapped around it, anchoring it against the light pole, the fire escape, and every other object that was fixed in place around it. In surprise, Kodachi's eyes followed the strands back to their source.

Raijin pushed his glasses up his nose with his free hand, the other holding the strands restraining the youkai tightly. "You seem to be in a small bit of difficulty, Kodachi-sama. I do hope you do not mind the intrusion."

She shook her head violently.

The rock creature laughed, a deep rumble. "Monofilaments won't cut me, filthy human."

The butler's glasses glittered. "Whoever said cutting you was my intention, beast?"

His hand clenched as lightning shot down the threads, crackling viciously around the rock creature as it howled in agony before exploding.

Raijin walked through the falling pebbles to kneel and check Mousse's pulse. "Well, at least your toy appears to be alive, Kodachi-sama."

"MOUSSE IS NOT A TOY!" She screamed, trembling in sudden rage.

Raijin gave her a look of disbelief as he snorted. He reached into his jacket and withdrew a small vial. He twisted the cap off and waved it under Mousse's nose. She coughed and jerked upright, blinking myopically. "Huh- wha-"

Kodachi knelt to take her hand. "It's okay, my love. The creature has been defeated."

Mousse nodded. "Are you okay, my mistress? You aren't hurt?"

"No, Mou-chan. I am fine. Raijin saved us."

"Raijin?" Mousse blinked, and started feeling around for her glasses.

"Here they are, madam" Raijin said as he held them out for her.

"Th-thank you" The angel girl bowed as she took them. "I- I thank you for defending my mistress."

"Think nothing of it. I cannot allow her to die after all. She has yet to return what she has stolen." Raijin said coldly.

Kodachi sighed. She looked up to see the Butler had his hand out to help her up, though he was studiously not looking at her. She sighed again and reached to accept it.

But as her hand touched his, she felt like her insides suddenly turned inside out and she barely had time to turn away from him and Mousse as she found herself retching violently.

"Beloved?" Mousse reached out to her. The nausea receded. She gasped for breath. "I- I'm o- okay. I- I just was suddenly overcome."

Raijin sighed disgustedly as he held out a grey handkerchief. "Here, madam."

"T-thank you." She shakily reached to accept it. Another retching fit assaulted her as their fingers touched.

Raijin snorted. "How appropriate. We both make each other sick." He said sarcastically.

When she could speak again, she looked up at him with sad eyes. "W- why did you save me if you hate me so?"

His eyes glittered. "I wonder." He turned and walked to the end of the ally. "Compose yourself Madam. There are yet more enemies to fight. You'd best hurry and go to help your friends."

The wind whistled through the alley as he vanished, leaving Kodachi blinking after him in confusion.

Mousse put her arm around her. "What is up with that guy?"

0

"IIIIIIII hhhhhhaaaaaaattttteeeee ttttteeeennnttttttiiiiicccccllllleee mmmmooooonnnnnsssstttteeerrrrrrssssss!"

Ai slammed into a pile of cardboard boxes with a thump. She shook her head trying to clear it. "Goddamn squirmy beast! You're going to pay for this!"

"You okay, Miss Monster?"

"Huh?" Ai blinked and looked to see a chubby man in an apron and white cap holding a hand out to her.

"You okay? That was quite a fall."

Ai took stock of herself, realizing her limbs all seemed to be attached, and that despite having been tossed several hundred feet, she seemed to be entirely unhurt. Well, other than her dignity. She was sprawled in the pile of boxes like a cheap drunk.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Only bruised my ego."

"Glad to hear it Miss Monster. Let me help you up."

She let him pull her to her feet, then had to pry her baton out of the wall. She finally got it free and turned to give the familiar looking man a bow. "Thank you for your help, sir."

"Nah Miss Monster. I should be thanking you. You're the one out there fighting for us."

The man shimmered and suddenly Ai found herself facing a large toad faced humanoid. "We really appreciate your heroism, Miss Monster."

Ai blinked. "Miss... Monster?"

The toad man smiled. "Yes ma'am. Thanks to you, my son has a safe school to attend. You're a local hero, Miss Monster. And now you're a magical girl too, out there saving us from these Chaosians. I'm really glad you're alright."

Ai blinked. "I- I'm a hero? But-but I'm just a human."

The toad man shook his head. "Not to us, Miss Monster. You're one of us."

She blushed in embarrassment. "I-I don't know what to say." She scratched her head sheepishly. "Thank you."

"Not at all. I was almost killed by that squid thing. You and that pretty vampire really saved my rear."

Ai started. "Oh yeah, I got to go help Ayeka!"

A large tentacle landed next to her. "No need to bother, Mistress. Your knight was victorious." Ayeka jumped down from the roof. "Stupid thing tried to strip me. I brought you a piece of him to deep fry."

Ai giggled. "Thank you, but I don't think I could eat such a big takoyaki ball."

The toad guy smiled. "I'll be happy to portion it out for you, Miss Monster. But now that your friend is here, I found something that might interest you gals."

"Humm?"

"There's something mighty strange in a warehouse a little way from here. It's where all these Chaosians came out of."

"I see." Ai reached up to grab her earring. "Lo-Shen, you there?"

"Trifle busy here Ai. You finish with that group?"

"Yeah, and we got something to investigate real quick. Got a witness saying there's something weird in a warehouse that these things came out of."

"Got it. Check it out immediately and don't waste time. We still got two more groups out there."

"On our way."

0

Megumi and Kaede stood back to back, ice and lasers carving a swath of destruction. Kyoko bounced from wall to wall above them, her shuriken flashing as she defended them from a swarm of fliers.

"Come on you bastards! You think you can beat us! Eat hot burning death!" Kaede screamed as she flash fried a giant youkai that looked like a cross between a spider and an eel. Her tail lashed as she furiously dodged a giant claw, wrapping around Megumi as she pulled her out of the way. The snow-girl rolled with her to come up, both guns flashing as she targeted the mantis like youkai. Kyoko's flaming baton shattered it as she bounced off the pavement, performing a spinning whirl as she streaked through a small group of imps in a flash of blue fire before leaping to an awning. Megumi shot the three flying creatures who rushed the fox girl, getting a quick grin from her before she was leaping onto the shoulders of the large ogre remaining. Her batons stabbed down into his chest as Kaede's combined shots blew a hole through his stomach.

The fox girl rode the falling ogre's shoulders as it fell to the pavement, then daintily stepped off its back and set down on its head as she sighed heavily. "Man these things are annoying."

Kaede fanned her hands with a wing. "My hands are starting to over-heat" she moaned.

Megumi leaned forward and blew on them, the air fogging from the cold. Kaede's hands actually sizzled as she sighed in relief. "Ah, much better."

Megumi giggled. "Gotta take care of my hot little wife!"

"Sorry to interrupt your little break, girls, but there's still two groups to deal with. Kodachi and Mousse are on their way to one, you got the other." Lo-Shen's voice came over the earrings

"Awww man. Any word yet on reinforcements?" Kaede whined.

"The Council has forces on the way, as does the JSDF. They're still about 20 minutes out. We've got to hold out till then. Trust me, you're not the only ones getting worn out. You girls are draining my manna like mad. Ai just called to say she's investigating one of the origin points of these creatures. Hopefully we can find out what these things are after."

"This is a lot worse than anything the Senshi have had to deal with." Kyoko complained.

"I know. This seems like a full scale invasion. We've confirmed it's Blackmoon, but what they are after is a mystery. They just seem to be carving a path through Tokyo, but it's not random. I'd almost swear they are making a circle. But a circle three miles in diameter is just insane."

"These things are insane."

"True. Alright girls, I wish I could let you rest, but people are dying. Get your hot little asses in gear."

They sighed as they all stood. "Yes, ma'am."

Kaede giggled tiredly. "You know, if it weren't true, I'd almost call that sexual harassment."

0

The palace rocked as another explosion lit the night. Pluto staggered as she and Gate headed towards the defense chamber.

"Why are the palace shields down?" Gate cried as another explosion threw her from her feet.

"I don't know!" Pluto caught herself on the wall. "I can't get a hold of Makoto or Ami! I don't know what happened. The AI hasn't responded either!"

"How could they get in without being detected?"

Pluto hit the panel on the security door. It slid open, and she stared in horror.

"Oh no!" She shook her head in denial, but it didn't change the sight before her.

The crystal chambers that Ami and Makoto had been protected by while they powered the palace shield were shattered, and both girls had been dragged into the center of the chamber, and their throats slit. Their blood was splattered all over the room, painted on the walls and floor in a bizarre pattern of symbols. Around their corpses a large circle had been painted.

Gate gagged. "H-h-ow could someone have done this? Only the Senshi can access this chamber!"

The answer stepped out from the shadows behind the shattered tubes. She was short, her purple fuku splashed with blood, her dead eyes staring emotionlessly at Pluto. Blood dripped down the strange looking weapon in her hand to splash on the floor.

Before Pluto could react, the girl blurred and Pluto screamed as she was pinned to the wall by the glaive. She coughed up blood as she felt her vision grow dark, the last sight she saw before passing out was the heavy collar around Saturn's throat.

Gate tried to run, but got barely five feet before she was yanked savagely by her hair and dragged back into the room. She found herself pinned to the ground in the center of the circle under Saturn's foot, squirming uselessly as the enslaved girl lifted Pluto's staff above her.

She screamed as the key plunged into her, and Saturn turned it.

0

The warehouse was a horrorshow. Strange machinery hummed around a scene straight from hell.

The center of the large chamber had been filled with a large pentagram, around which what appeared to be five large spikes had been placed. These were each connected via a series of cables to the complex machinery surrounding it. A large holographic display floated behind the central area, showing an overhead of central Tokyo with a large red circle overlaid. It was nearly complete. Beyond the hologram was a shimmering hole in the air, looking like a dark hole into nothingness.

But that was not what had both girls almost ready to vomit. Mounted on the spikes were the bodies of five nearly identical girls. Their faces were in shadow, but each of their stomachs had been ripped open, and their internal organs removed. Their blood had dripped down to fill the channels of the pentagram, and it glowed redly.

Ayeka was the first to move forward. "Gah, this is terrible. The smell of blood in here is wrong. It doesn't smell at all appetizing, but like it's corrupt." Her eyes glowed. "And those girls look like sisters." She got close enough to finally see one of their faces. "Oh fuck no! She looks like Zhu-Shu!"

"Say what?" Ai darted forward, eyes wide. "Fuck, it does. Huh, so does this girl!"

"They all do. What the fuck is going on?"

Ai grabbed her earring. "Lo-Shen, this is really fucked up. We got a bunch of machinery, a glowing pentagram of blood, and five dead Zhu-Shu's"

A glowing tear ripped the air next to her apart as the lavender haired rabbit girl stepped out to grab one of the dead girls by the head. She mumbled for a few second before taking her hand off. "Thank the gods, it's not actually her. These are constructs. How they made copies of her I don't know, but these are dolls more than they are human." She looked around the room. "What the hell is all of this? I don't get this setup at all. That's a circle for gathering energy but what would require the life forces of five sacrifices?"

She poked around for a few seconds before stopping at the hologram. "Shit."

The red circle finished connecting. It blinked as the machines around them hummed loudly and a bubble of force threw them across the room. The hologram flared as eight points of light began to draw two interlocking squares in the middle and symbols began to appear.

The ground rumbled as Lo-Shen cursed. "Curse me for a blind old fool! That's a fucking Gate Anchor!

0

The entire ship cheered when the last Blackmoon vessel shattered into a fireball. Ukyo sighed as she leaned forward in the chair.

"Good job, guys." She looked towards Sailormoon, "How are the repairs coming, Usagi?"

"The left wing should be repaired in just a few moments. I'm starting to get the hang of how to do this!"

She looked to her right. "Any luck with that collar, Clove?"

"No. Not yet. I'm sorry, this thing is a maze."

"Alright, _Mu-San_, any sign of the _Tianlong_?"

"No. My sensors are being actively jammed in one direction though. I can't sense anything directly below us. I'm getting null readings from the planet's surface."

Ukyo looked at the navigational displays. "Shit, we're already 8,000 miles out? Dammit, we've been lured!"

A chuckle echoed around the bridge as a glowing globe formed in the middle of the space between the forward viewports. It resolved into a hooded figure, it's face covered by an impassive mask, empty eye sockets above two blood red slashes. "You might be regaining her memories, Ukyo Kounji, but Orihime you are not. I was beginning to wonder when you were going to finally realize I was leading you by the nose."

Ukyo snarled. "Laugh while you can, Xi'an Chi. I'm coming for your head this time!" She brought the ship around and started to accelerate towards the planet.

"Are you now? Are you sure, Ukyo? And here I figured you'd be so much more eager to rescue your little lost dragon." A pair of black scaled arms wrapped around the wizard's throat as the display drew back to reveal Zhu Shu's face giving them a fanged and vicious smile. "Although you might find she has no wish to be rescued. She has taken so very well to her Chaos Crystal after all. Almost eagerly in fact."

"Can we kill them yet? The ssssssssssssssight of them ssssssssssssssickensssssssssss me."

"Now now, my pet. All in due time." Xi'an Chi chuckled.

Ukyo glared. "You will suffer for this."

"Will I now? Do you truly think you can stop me? With that ship? So tell me, have you had any luck removing little Mu's collar?"

Ukyo cursed under her breath. She glanced at the nav display. 7000 miles.

"Commander, the jamming has stopped. Reading over one hundred ships directly ahead, and one very large vessel directly over Crystal Tokyo."

"Do you have a good view, Ukyo? I certainly would not want you to miss the show."

"What are you up to you bastard!"

"Come now Ukyo. Do I look like a Bond Villain to you? Do you really expect me to tell you everything?"

Her eyes flicked to the side again. 6000. _((Rei, charge up as much as you can, we're only going to get one shot at disabling that ship!))_

_((I already have been, love.))_

Xi'an Chi looked to the side. "I was surprised to see you again Clove. I rather enjoyed killing you last time. I'll have to thank Hild for the pleasure of being able to do it again." He laughed at the glare she gave him. "Are you enjoying my little puzzle?"

"I will free her, you demon!"

"Awww, I'm touched." He snapped his fingers and the collar disintegrated. "Like that actually served any purpose other than a distraction."

Clove blinked as Mu raised her hand in surprise and felt her unchained neck.

Ukyo's eyes widened. "Oh shit."

"You really should have paid far more attention to what you loaded aboard your ship." The amusement in Xi'an Chi's voice was strong.

"Commander, detecting massive energy surge in ships h- KKKKrrrzzzzzzsttttttkkkkk!"

Every surface in the ship suddenly crawled with lightning as Mu cried out in pain. The gem in her forehead threw tiny bolts in all directions before it suddenly shattered. She collapsed as the entire ship went dead.

Xi'an Chi's empty sockets looked around the bridge, and all the people picking themselves up off the floor. "I do hope you enjoy the slow death I've arranged for you. As Khan once said, Revenge is a dish best served cold, and it is very cold in space."

As the holo faded Ukyo screamed "Xi'annnnnnnn Chiiiiiiiiiiii!"

0

Crystal Tokyo was burning. A giant circle of fire with two large squares interconnected within it burned around the tower in the center. Within the palace, fires burned around the crystal surrounding the Queen, while a tall sliver haired man laughed over her. Deep within the palace bowels an empty eyed Saturn stood over a still barely alive Gate, the key in her hand glowing. A few hundred miles directly over the city, the Tianlong moved into place directly above the palace.

Streams of energy ran from the rim of the ship to its center, then sprang down to the surface to strike the tower at its peak. At the same instant that it did, Saturn shoved the key all the way into Gate and turned it. Gate screamed as a line of light split her in half. A maelstrom of light engulfed Saturn, and the still barely alive Pluto and they vanished. The tornado of energy tore through the palace, shattering the crystal and crushing the obsessed Dimande along with his obsession. The city itself followed as the light devoured it. In moments, a giant black void formed at the center of the swirling whirlpool of energy. The beam of energy from the massive vessel traced out the boundaries of the black void as it began to descend. The surrounding vessels preceded it, accelerating as they dove into the void. They vanished with splashes of darkness.

The larger vessel could not descend as quickly. It would be almost an hour before it reached the gate, though the massive displacement of air was already beginning to superheat it's bottom hull. In its main bridge, Emeraude stood at the viewport and laughed.

"Now, you pathetic humans. We are coming to devour you and take back our homeworld!"

0

The girls had gathered on a rooftop close to the Tower after they had finished with the remaining groups, where they were trying to regain their breath. Lo-Shen was pacing back and forth furiously.

"Curse me for a fool. I should have seen they were making a gate, but what the fuck needs a gate that insanely huge! They've killed thousands of people to power it, and we fucking helped them! It didn't matter who died so long as enough blood was spilt! If there had been any way to stop them permanently without killing them, we MIGHT have been able to prevent it, but there wasn't one! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

"Can't we just blow up those machines?" Ayeka asked wearily

"I tried. they're too fucking well shielded now that they are active. If I had know what they were earlier, I might have been able to. But we never would have even known about them if the fishmonger hadn't found them and told Ai."

Ai nodded "That's why he looked familiar. He runs that fish market in the ginza that specializes in fresh water fish!" She yawned. "Remind me to stop by and thank him soon."

Ayeka reached out to squeeze her hand. "I heard what he told you, 'Miss Monster'."

Ai blushed. "I- I'm not a hero. I only gave that speech because I wanted to make sure you guys wouldn't be stigmatized. I just thought so long as the cat was already out of the bag, we might as well just take it and run."

"And like he said, you created a school where for the first time ever, youkai and humans sit side by side, without fear. A school where everyone knows I'm a vampire, and I get people asking me to bite them just so that they can brag about being bitten."

Ai raised an eyebrow. "You do?"

Ayeka rolled her eyes. "I got five requests just today."

Kaede chuckled. "Yeah, we've become like a pack of pop idols. We're more popular than we've ever been." She shook her head. "I can't even imagine what the stories will be like after tonight. I was expecting we'd fight one or two youma like the Senshi do, not something as high profile as slaughtering a youkai invasion."

Lo-Shen sighed. "I'm sorry for getting you involved in something this big. I never expected anything like this. I don't know how much longer I can keep you powered, and I fear this is only the beginning. That gate is going to open soon, and whatever comes through it..." She turned to the swirl in the sky over the tower. "I really hope we can muster the strength to-"

She was interrupted as a hum that had been growing louder became the roar of helicopter blades. A spot light lit the rooftop as two dozen JSDF soldiers in combat gear dropped to the roof. They secured the perimeter quickly as the girls looked on in shock, several of the soldiers waving to them or giving them a thumbs up.

"What the hell is going on?" Ai muttered.

A large boxy vehicle in military green descended under a gigantic twin bladed helicopter even before the soldiers had completed encircling the roof. No sooner was it on the roof than the rear door opened and the sides slid outwards, revealing an interior stuffed with electronics and monitors. Two men stepped down from the obvious command center and approached the girls.

"Greetings young Ladies. May I inquire as to who your commander is?" said the man in the crisp military uniform.

Lo-Shen stood forward. "I am Lo-Shen, Loremistress of the Amazons, and Unlimited Class Archmage."

He saluted. "I am Colonel Yakimoto, of the JSDF, Madam Archmage. This is Major Kodakawa of the Tokyo SWAT. We've been ordered to co-ordinate and assist you. We are awaiting the arrival of the government representative who is to be in over all command of the joint task force."

Lo-Shen raised an eyebrow. "That is good news Colonel. Please, be at ease. I'm not really versed in military etiquette."

He smiled. "Understood, Madam." He turned to the girls. "May I say it is a pleasure to be able to meet the Monster Squad. You ladies have been an inspiration to us all tonight."

Kaede giggled. "The Monster Squad?"

The major chuckled. "That's the name the media has given you. You've been on every channel non-stop since this incident began. You're national heroes."

Ai laughed. "How about that my lovely monsters. Who would have every thought of us as heroes."

"You are indeed, Miss Konjou." The colonel said. "If you ladies would care to join us by the C and C, we have some energy drinks and snacks, and the monitors for the news should be up momentarily. The Government is about to broadcast a special announcement."

Wearily, they got to their feet and followed, with the appreciative eyes of the soldiers and a couple of cheers following them across the roof. Chairs had been set up around a small table for them filled with small finger snacks, along with ample supplies of sports drinks and a dozen different brands of energy drinks. Ai had to laugh at the cans of Monster prominently displayed in the top of the cooler.

One of the soldiers attending the table, a young private in standard dress instead of the combat gear, bowed to them. "Hello, I'm PFC Shinji, and if there is anything you ladies require, just let me know." He turned to Ayeka. "We have made special accommodations for your needs, Miss Hibishi." He turned and opened a small insulated container. "Is type O negative okay?"

Ayeka blinked. "You- you- brought me blood?"

He smiled. "Of course, warmed to 98 degrees. Several of the boys wanted to volunteer to let you bite them, but we were informed fresh blood would likely send you into a state of euphoria."

Ayeka sat down in a chair shaking her head in disbelief. "They actually know that?"

"We were provided information on your needs while we were in transit, along with supplies. You really shouldn't be so surprised. Before we became soldiers, we were teenage boys, you know. Plenty of us are still Otakus. Female youkai are fantasies come true for many of us."

Ai couldn't help laughing. "Only in Japan."

A couple of soldiers finished setting up a TV and turned on the news. The girls stared in shock to see clip after clip of themselves fighting the reavers, many of them taken by the very people they had saved. Cellphone videos, handheld cams, even professional news footage. It looked like half a dozen news helicopters had been following them from moments after they had engaged the revenging horde.

And interspersed were occasional short bios on each of them, taken from their website, and in Kodachi and Mousse's case, school photos. They even had hunted through the video in order to get shots that showed off their costumes every detail.

Then came the short interview with the leader of a national LGBTQ rights group, talking about Ai being an inspiration to lesbians everywhere with her engagement to four other girls, and how her brave example, blah blah blah.

Ai groaned. "Geez, they even know that? What business is it of theirs if I'm married to you girls? I don't want to be some stupid icon for other people to exploit." She sighed. "I didn't marry you to crusade for gay rights. I just did it because you are my reasons for being happy. I can't live without you."

Kyoko hugged her. "We know Ai. It's just the news. They have to make a fuss over nothing. "

Then everything was interrupted as the special broadcast began.

_"We go live to the Ministry of Defense for a special government briefing. Miss Nakimora?"_

_"Thank you, Mr Hiro. We are here at the front of the Ministry building where in just a minute we are expecting a briefing on the terror attacks in Tokyo. It looks like General Yamoto is taking the podium now."_

The camera shifted to show an elderly one star General who cleared his throat as he prepared to speak.

_"People of Japan, tonight we have suffered a surprise assault by a terror organization that calls itself Blackmoon. I have been informed that several previous small scale acts have been dealt with by the Senshi, who are, I am informed, currently believed to have been captured by Blackmoon in order to remove them as an obstacle for this mass assault. In their place, Japan must recognize the emergence of a group of brave young girls who have arisen to defend our nation in this time of need. Their brave action has saved the lives of countless thousands."_

_"However, it has also exposed a national secret. My fellow countrymen, for 300 years, Japan has had secret allies. They have stood in the shadows, lived among us, and followed our laws. For 300 years, they have been our defense against the beings who assaulted Tokyo tonight. They have never asked for praise for this defense, nor ever for a reward. All they have asked is the freedom to be allowed to live in peace with us all."_

_"These young ladies are from a school which has been mandated as a national experiment. In this school, humans study side by side with our secret guardians, the Youkai, and stand as an example to all of Japan as to the possibilities of such peaceful co-existence. All of the brave girls who have defended Tokyo tonight are from this school, Furinkan High, and their bravery and heroism cannot be doubted."_

_"These young women all live by The Accords. It is a set of laws that bind them to live by human law, and to live human lives. All youkai who live by the Accord are sworn to never harm humanity, and to defend it against their own kind who reject the Accord. These Blackmoon are one such group. Collectively, they are called Chaosians. For 300 years, those who live by the Accord have prevented such events as have occurred tonight, and they are currently mobilizing to deal with the next wave of this invasion."_

_"Citizens of Japan. Because of these events, we can no longer hide the existence of the Youkai. So I have come before you with a special request from the Emperor himself. You have seen their bravery in these young girls tonight, yet they are merely a handful of the millions of brave youkai who throughout our history have stood to defend this great nation against the forces of darkness. Tonight, the Emperor acknowledges the Youkai as citizens of Japan officially, and requests that his beloved people do the same. Let us show the world the courage of the nation of Japan in accepting our youkai brethren!"_

Cheers erupted throughout the crowd around the ministry, as well as from the soldiers gathered behind the girls to watch the broadcast.

The general gave them a few moments before motioning for silence. _"Thank you for such enthusiasm. Now, to answer your questions about the Youkai, may I present Miss Yoshi Miyaki, chief minister of Human/Youkai relations."_

Kaede blinked "Mom? Hey it is, that's my Mom!"

The tall raven haired beauty stepped behind the podium _"Greetings, Japan. I am here to offer you answers to your questions about youkai, but there are two things I wish to get out of the way first."_

She shimmered as her wings and tail emerged, along with a small pair of horns. _"First. Yes, I am a youkai. My species is succubus. We have been requested by the Emperor to show our true forms for all official matters. Like my fellow youkai, I have sworn an oath to defend humanity and to live among you peacefully, harming none I have served the nation of Japan for ten years now as Minister of Human/Youkai relations, coordinating the interactions of the Japanese Government and the Youkai High Council, helping to ensure that all Youkai comply with the Accords and Japanese law."_

_"Secondly. I wish to express how proud I am of my daughter Kaede, of the Monster Squad. Words cannot express how proud of you I am right now, Kaede. You and your dear friends have been a beacon of light in this hour of darkness. I know I have often been too busy to tell you this as often as a mother should, but know that you have my love and my best wishes as you fight this evil. Go, my brave daughter, and show the world the passion that defines us as succubi."_

_"Now, to official business. If you will raise your hands, I will do my best to answer your questions..."_

The briefing devolved into a typical news conference question and answer session, and the girls stopped watching to hug a crying Kaede.

0

She floated in the bright void.

Green eyes looked around in confusion as Mu huddled into a ball. "Mu is lost," she said softly.

She heard footsteps. She looked up to see a figure of pure light, a woman composed of a brighter whiteness than the white void, but not so bright as to make looking at her difficult. She stopped before Mu.

"Well, hello little one. You most certainly don't appear to be a Yggdrasil Seed."

"Mu is not Seed. Mu is Mu."

The figure sat on her knees in front of Mu. "I see. You look very much like someone I know, Mu. Please tell me, how did you come to be here."

"Mu does not know. Mu was sitting with mistress in ship, then Mu felt much hurt. Mu heard Seed scream along with Mu, then Mu was here, and Mu could no longer hear Seed."

"Yes. I heard the Seed die just before I could establish two way communication." The white figure lifted her hand. "May I touch your forehead, Mu?"

Mu nodded. "Are you going to look at Mu's mind like Mistress does?"

"Yes, actually." Her fingers gently brushed Mu's forehead. "Humm. No wonder you seem like such an innocent. Your memories only stretch back a few hours."

"Yes. Mu only awoke a little while ago, shortly before Mistress claimed Mu as her slave. But Mistress does not treat Mu as slave. Mistress has been very kind to Mu and so have Mistresses friends. Mu has decided Mu like Mistress very much."

"And how were you connected to the Seed?"

"Mu does not know. Seed said Seed and Mu were sym- symbi-"

"Symbiotes?"

"Yes. Mu not know what mean, but Mu and Seed share same body. When Mu woke, Seed was still sleeping, but when Mistress's friend Ukyo turned Seed's ship on, Seed woke up too."

"I see. Mu, I must ask if you are aware of the situation right now?"

"Mu does not understand. Mu knows that Mistress and friends were fighting, but Mu does not know what has happened since Mu came here."

"When the seed died, the ship died as well, Mu. Right now, your Mistress and her friends are trapped in a dead ship, in deep space. Without the Seed, even the basic functions like life-support and the engines won't work, not with all ships functions having been actively under the Seed's control when it died."

"Oh no! Mu does not want Mistress to be hurt! Mistress has been so kind to Mu!" She grabbed the white girls hands. "Please, tell Mu what Mu can do to help!"

"That's a very complicated answer, Mu. But before I tell you, I have to know, are you asking because you are a slave and it is your duty?"

Mu thought about it before shaking her head. "Mu is not. Mistress has said that Mu is not slave, and that Mu must make decisions for Mu, not do what Mu think Mistress would want Mu to do. Mu does not have much experience, but Mu knows that Mistress is kind to Mu, and that makes Mistress important to Mu. Mu would be sad if Mistress were hurt. Mu does not want to see Mistress hurt because of this. Please, tell Mu how she can help mistress so Mu does not have to be sad."

The white figure nodded. "Alright then. Because of the nature of your connection to the Seed, when it died, you became the ships brain. You and the ship are now one, like the seed was."

"Mu is now ship? Not Seed?"

"Yes. This void you are in, it's the Ships Control Interface Protocol. It's white, because your brain has no way to interpret the data all around us."

"Mu does not understand."

"You're not able to understand what you are seeing, little one. That's why everything is white, including me. The Seed understood this. You do not. That's all."

"Ah, Mu does not see because Mu is not Seed. Mu sees!"

The white figure chuckled. "Yes, little one. Now, I _can_ program a compatible interface for you and the ship. What that means is that you will become the ship. You will have both your own body that you have now, and you will also have a second body that is the ship. Do you understand?"

"Yes. Mu will be Ship, and then Mu can help Mistress!"

"Yes. But before I do this, Mu, you need to understand that this will change you. It will change you forever. Once you have become the ship, you will no longer be able to be separated from it like you could be when the Seed was in you. That tail you have when the Seed connects, it will be your tail. It will bind you to the Ship and if it is cut, both you and the ship could die."

"Mu does not care. Mu want to help Mistress!"

"Very well, little one. There is one more thing I wish to tell you before we begin. My name is Sarhia. I am the creator of the Seed, and once you become the ship, you will be able to communicate with me whenever you wish, okay? Just think my name, and I will answer. By doing this, you will become one of my children, and I will do all in my power to protect you. That is unfortunately rather limited, but I can at least be there to guide you, because those people you are with, your Mistress, and her friends, they are very dear to me. They mean more to me than words can say, and I wish to see them protected. As my child, you can help me do that. We share the same desire, Mu. Let us protect our precious friends together."

"Mu desire that very much, Sarhia."

0

It was starting to get cold. Ukyo was cursing as she tried to get the engines to power up for the thirtieth time, to no avail.

It was bad enough that they were dead in space, it was bad enough that they could look out the window and see that Crystal Tokyo was no more. It was bad enough that the _Tianlong_ was right there in front of their noses as it descended into that gaping black void that Ukyo had no doubt was a gate back to their homeworld and time. It was bad enough knowing that on the far side, the wizard was no doubt launching a full scale assault on her home.

What made it worse had been the discovery of a small stowaway.

Chibi-Usa had apparently been in the hold hiding when the EMP device had gone off, and while she seemed to have only suffered a few minor burns, she was still unconscious in one of the ships cabins with Usagi. Chibi-Usa and Mu had been the worst victims of the massive electrical shockwave. Clove and Ying-Ying were on the bridge trying to revive the comatose slave girl.

But if she couldn't get this engine on, it wouldn't matter. They would all be frozen in just a few hours.

She was head first in the console trying to make sure no loose connections were preventing the engines from turning over, when all of a sudden, the console beeped.

"Mu is turning primary power on now." the slave girl's voice came over the intercom. "Mu requests that Ukyo please get out of Mu's console. Ukyo is tickling Mu."

Ukyo jerked her head out and stared at the console in disbelief as it came to full life and the engines began to thrumm.

"Mu is sorry Mu took so long. Mu had to get help to understand how to run Mu's second body. Mu is now fully functional again. All of Mu's systems are repaired, and Mu is under your command, Uc-chan!"

Ukyo dashed up the stairs and down the corridor to the bridge to find Mu sitting next to Clove and Ying-Ying, waving cheerfully at her.

"She just suddenly woke up." Clove shrugged. "And has apparently become the Seed."

"No. Mu is not Seed. Mu will miss Seed, but Mu is Mu and Mu is _Mu-San_. Mu was rewritten by Goddess Sarhia so Mu could help Mu's Mistress and Mu's friends."

The rest of the gang tumbled in as Ukyo gawked. "Sarhia... rewrote you?"

"Yes. Mu is now able to be _Mu-San's_ Core. Goddess Sarhia told me to tell Ukyo, Mu is now her child, and together, we will do all we can to protect you."

Ukyo had to wipe tears from her eyes. "Tell her... tell her thank you, Mu." She turned to the others. "Alright, stations everyone! We've got to catch the _Tianlong_ before she gets into that Gate!"

_Author's note: Don't ask me how I am managing to write this so quickly. Maybe it's because this story arc has had two years to percolate in the back of my mind._


	9. Chapter Eight: Queen of Pain

Chapter Eight: Queen of Pain

Urd glared at Lind. "That's a Temporal Gate out there about to open up over Tokyo. We've got a horde of Youkai invading from an alternate future, and all of my various charges - all the people who are involved in this wish - are out there! Between me, Bell and Skuld, we can shut that gate down and you know it!"

"Be that as it may, Urd, I am under orders to ensure that you do not interfere. This is a matter that must be handled by mortals. It has been created by mortals, and must be solved by mortals. If you interfere, you will violate the terms of the treaty with Nifelheim, and instead of just a youkai invasion, you could trigger Ragnarok."

Urd gave a disgusted sigh. "Fine! Fine, whatever. Did you really need to bring along twenty-five Valkyrie's just to make sure I sit on my ass?"

"I brought a sufficient number for the task at hand. Our task is not merely to prevent your interference, but to defend your residence if things get out of hand. We are stationed at every deity's residence in Tokyo, not just yours."

Bell came in with the tea. "Well, you are certainly welcome in our home, Lind."

"Thank you Belldandy."

Mara accepted a cup. "So what did Sarhia's report say about me, Valkyrie Lind?"

Lind sipped her tea. "You are cleared for now, Goddess Mara. Pending the outcome of your probationary review, you may assume your duties as a goddess normally. The unusual mix of god and demon coding within your matrix does not appear to be a sign of a continued connection to Nifelheim, though you are the only goddess who is linked to another goddess for your doublet." She sighed. "I must ask that you keep that fact under strictest confidence though."

Mara blinked. "I'm still linked to a goddess?"

Lind's eyes flicked for just a second to Urd, before returning to Mara. "Yes. After all, you were bound as a child. Your transformation to a goddess did not alter your personal past. The doublet bond is unaltered."

"I see." She looked wistfully out the window. "When I was younger I used to daydream about who my doublet might be. I always hoped it was Urd. I guess it will be even more of secret now though."

Lind made a sour face. "Actually Kami-Sama ordered me to tell you. And it _is_ Urd. You are all required to keep that knowledge to yourself, but Kami-Sama decided that it was information that would no longer be harmful for you to know, since you are both goddesses. The primary purpose of secrecy is, after all, to provide protection to both sides. Since you are now both goddesses, it serves no purpose anymore to keep it from the two of you. But it is ill advised to allow that information to be known, as it effectively cancels the protective effect of the doublet system for you as well. Should Hild become aware of this fact, she would likely gladly eliminate you both."

Mara grabbed Urd's hand. "Really! Did you hear that Urd! We're truly meant to be together!"

Urd smiled. "Yes, it does seem that way. We're bound body and soul." She giggled. "I'm starting to feel like the goddess of Yuri lately, I've made so many girl-girl relationships."

Lind raised an eyebrow. "I must admit there do seem to be an unusual number of unconventional relationships involved in your current task."

Urds eyes strayed to the TV, the volume on low. She chuckled. "Still all things considered, they've turned out to be some rather amazing matches."

Mara nodded. "That they have dear. That they have."

0

The subjects of the conversation were still on the rooftop, watching as the JSDF coordinated a defense perimeter outside of the encircled area. The conventional troops were essentially evacuating the entire zone, and cordoning off the area. Only combat forces were permitted in the zone.

Which had shocked the girls to learn that they were considered "combat forces." They were sitting around the table while Lo-Shen and the cats were discussing the locations of the previous Blackmoon attacks.

"You're certain that is all of them?" Lo-Shen asked Artemis as she poked pins into a Tokyo map.

"Yes. We're not certain of their purposes, but it appeared they were attempting to create zones of negative energy at these locations."

Lo-Shen cursed. She laid her hand on the map and muttered a long string of syllables. Glowing bands of light began to criss-cross the map, several large lines forming intersections at the pins. "Dammit, they were trying to poison the lay lines. If you hadn't stopped them, they wouldn't have needed to send the shock troops. Tokyo would have ripped itself apart for them. What the hell are they up to? Why are they trying to release so much life energy?" She pointed to the locations of the machines. "It's obvious these are collecting all of the released energy, but where is it being sent, and why?"

"You mean all of this is simply to kill people, as many as possible?" Ayeka asked in shock. "Everything has been to waste lives?"

Lo-Shen nodded. "Xi'an Chi cares nothing for Blackmoon. They are little more than convenient tools for whatever his real plan is. The only certain thing so far is that he wants death, and lots of it. We can likely expect a massive wave assault as soon as that gate opens. And that will happen as soon as whatever entered the far end makes it to our side." She looked to the swirl. "Which could be hours, or seconds from now."

Kodachi came back from the roof's edge looking a little green. "It- it looks like they may have finished the evacuation. That is good. I do not wish for any more non-combatants to get hurt."

Kaede gave her a look. "You okay, hun? You're tasting a little strange."

Kodachi looked at her. "Tasting?"

Kaede shrugged. "It's a succubus thing." She leaned forward. "When you look at someone, have you been feeling like you can tell exactly how they feel emotionally?"

Kodachi nodded. "Except... well, there is one person who I can't feel anything from, and when I touched his hand, he made me violently ill." She held her stomach as she winced. "And I have been feeling increasingly uneasy as the night has progressed."

Kaede nodded. "Yeah, we're going to have to teach you how to control that. Part of it is all the negative emotional energy in the atmosphere. You're probably having trouble with it. You're not used to keeping out the stuff you don't want. And that person, do you have a bad relationship with them?"

Kodachi sighed. "I am certain he hates me."

"Well, it really shouldn't be making you physically sick though. You must be really sensitive since this is so new for you." She smiled. "If it gets really bad, just try and spend a little time with Mou-chan. Since you have her heart, that should make you feel better."

Kodachi made a sour face. "That is what Raijin keeps accusing me of - having his heart. But he doesn't act as if he loves me, but hates me!"

Kaede shrugged. "Well, you're sworn to the accord. It's not as if you could take his heart from him without his consent anymore."

Kodachi blinked. "We- we can do such things?"

"Well, a Chaosian can. A heart taken by force provides a much different source of power for a succubus than one given freely by love. That's why we swear the oaths of binding. A Chaosian succubus would find this whole horror show to be a free feast." Kaede shuddered. "Get a pack of dark sisters here, and it'd be like sharks in a feeding frenzy."

Kodachi was giving her a troubled look. "How- how would you even know if you had taken a heart? Could- could it be taken accidentally?"

Kaede gave her a look of disbelief. "You'd have to be like a complete idiot to not..." She stopped and looked mortified. "Geez, I'm sorry Dachi-chan. I forgot your mother was a Chaosian and that you've got less than no clue about your succubus abilities." She reached out to cover Kodachi's hand with her own. "This, this person, the one who you're talking about. Did- did you have sex with him?"

Kodachi looked down, ashamed as she nodded. "I- I took his virginity, and that of the girl he loves."

Kaede shook her head. "That alone wouldn't do it." She blushed. "Um... The truth is, one of the things that the oath does to succubi is restrain their natural tendencies." She bit her lip. "We- we- " She looked over to Ai and her face flared so red she looked like she was about to catch fire.

"Go ahead, Kaede. You're teaching her about her species. She needs to know. And I am finding this fascinating."

Kaede winced and gave a really sheepish grin. "Um... well... truth to tell... Succubi are natural bitch doms." She scratched her head nervously. "The oath kinda makes us passive and a little submissive instead."

Kodachi joined her in her shamefaced blush. "Ah... I see. I- I treated both of them most shamefully, and utterly humiliated them until they could not see one another at school without running from the other in shame."

Kaede sighed. "That would do it."

Ai leaned over and stroked her finger along Kaede's cheek. "So, you mean to say that without the Oath, I'd be the one at the end of _your_ collar?"

Kaede let out an eep. "M- m- m- maybe?"

Ayeka laughed. "But, Kaede, you're so cute when you're on your knees begging right next to me."

"Ayeka!"

"Settle down, you too. This is serious." Lo-Shen interrupted. "Kaede, is there any way to check whether or not Kodachi has stolen this boys heart?"

Kaede looked very nervous. "But- but stealing hearts is a serious offense... It essentially can force the human to be a slave."

"Like my mother did to my father." Kodachi said sadly. "Please, tell me Kaede. I must know if I am guilty of this sin and how I might undo the harm I have caused."

"Relax, Kaede. There are extenuating circumstances. She obviously didn't know her powers were developing, or that she was exercising them." Lo-Shen said reassuringly. "Surely she can't be condemned as harshly as someone who knowingly committed the crime."

"Nonetheless, As a Kuno, it is her duty to face up to both the responsibility of her actions, and to atone for them, no matter the punishment."

They looked up in startlement to look at the new voice, and Kodachi hurriedly dropped to her knees and bowed. "Of course, Uncle. Please forgive me, Uncle."

The tall white haired youkai waved dismissively. "It cannot be helped, Kodachi. But regardless, you are still responsible for your actions. You may count yourself lucky, my niece. Had this been discovered prior to your taking your Oath, I would have had you terminated as a Chaosian. Once this incident is over, you will still have to face judgment, the severity of which will depend on your success in rectifying this problem."

Lo-Shen sighed. "I will speak on your behalf, child, but as Loremistress, I must uphold the law." She turned to Kaede. "Now, is there a way to make certain whether or not she has committed this act?"

Kaede bit her lip worriedly again. "Well... um... yes." She admitted, hanging her head. "I'm sorry, Dachi-chan."

Kodachi rose to sit on her knees. "Please, Kaede-san, tell me how I may find out."

Kaede lifted her hand to her chest, centered right above her cleavage. "First, place your hand here."

Kodachi did.

"Now, you need to visualize an invisible drawer. I know, it sounds silly, but just do it. Once you've firmly got the image in your mind, pull it open."

Kaede's hand moved forwards, and with it came four brightly shining orbs of colored light. "See. These are the hearts of my beloved wives, given to me in love and happiness."

Ai blinked. "Are those, like, our actual hearts?"

Kaede smiled. "Not your physical ones. These are the bonds we share between us. The hearts of your souls. One day, they are what will allow me to give each of you a daughter."

"So, when did we give those to you?" Kyoko asked, looking at the orbs in wonder. "They are so pretty."

Kaede tousled her hair. "I received them when you had sex with me with all of your love and passion. When me 'made love' for the first time as opposed to simply having 'sex'."

"Do- do the colors match our outfits?" she asked pointing to the brightest blue orb. "Is- is that me?"

Kaede chuckled. "Yes dear."

Ai groaned. "Are you saying my heart is PINK?"

Kaede gave her an amused look and nodded. She looked over to where Kodachi was still trying unsuccessfully to "open" her "drawer".

"You've got to visualize the drawer being pushed out as much as being drawn, Dachi-chan. It's a spiritual thing. You can't just yank it open with your hand."

Kodachi nodded, her tongue sticking out the side of her mouth in concentration. On the eighth try, her face was illuminated as three orbs came into view. Only one shone brightly.

The other two were dark, and small black bolts of energy crawled along their surfaces.

Kaede's face fell. "Damn. You actually did it. I am so sorry Dachi-chan."

"How- how can I return them?" her cry was anguished.

Kaede shook her head. "It's going to be hard."

"I don't care! I must!"

Kaede gently pushed Kodachi's hand and the incriminating orbs back to her chest. "You can only return them the same way you took them. Somehow, you will have to convince them both to have sex with you again, with the roles reversed. You will have to be their willing toy. In every way, they have to be in control, and you have to be utterly submissive to them. You can't just give them their hearts, Dachi-chan. They have to take them back from you."

Kodachi's breath caught as she looked at Mousse. "But- but- I love Mou-chan!"

Kaede nodded. "You do not have to love them, Dachi-chan, nor they you. Friendship is sufficient. But you will have to be both a sex partner as well as a catalyst between them." Kaede sighed in resignation. "We're succubae, Dachi-chan. All of our abilities revolve around sex in one way or another. Even my illusion abilities are about being able to make myself appealing to potential prey. We are predators after all. Before you took the oath, those hearts probably helped power your incredible gymnastic abilities. But you've ceased to be compatible with the kind of energy that they would supply. Now they are like a slow poison. You've got to find a way to return them, or they will eventually kill you."

Kodachi's eyes strayed to the hard eyes of her Uncle. "I will find a way to return them and atone for what I have done. And I will face whatever punishment I must."

"We will speak of this later, niece. For now, we have more pressing issues. I will remind you that you are still presently agents of the High Council. I will be depending on you in this unpleasant event. At present, you are tasked with providing defense of this command station. I have deployed a dozen squadrons of our best Hunters along with 2 divisions of the JSDF that are solely composed of youkai within the perimeter as our main defense. I also have my personal guard and will take the field if I deem it necessary."

Lo-Shen nodded. "Understood, Lord Shessomaru. I will place myself under your command. I am growing short on manna though."

"That is being addressed. For now, I have with me a half dozen mages. Would you coordinate with them and assist in preparing the support spells they are laying on the soldiers?"

"Of course."

He started to turn away when he noticed Ayeka nervously had her hand up. "Yes, Miss Hibishi?"

"You- you said you had your personal guard with you?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Your father is occupied, Miss Hibishi, but provided you and he both survive tonight, I do believe he intends to have a talk with you later."

"Is- is- is he mad at me?"

A smile threatened to cross his lips. "Quite the opposite, Miss Hibishi. He seemed quite pleased with the skill you were showing with your sword. In due time, perhaps you shall replace him as my sword master." He turned and started to walk towards the C and C. "So stay alive, Miss Hibishi. You still have several centuries of improvement to make after all."

0

"I wanted to kill them myssssssssssssself." Shadow grumped as she sulked next to the throne. She'd been pouting ever since Xi'an Chi had released his scrying spell on the Mu-San, much to Xi'an Chi's amusement.

"I am quite sure you did, my pet. But the danger they posed once out in space was far less than if I had allowed them to stay in Crystal Tokyo. Against even my best troops, as formidable as they were, they might have prevented the sacrifice. And had I allowed you to hunt them, your 'other self' could have caused difficulties of her own." Xi'an Chi chuckled. "No, once I realized they had only one option for trying to reach you here, I had no doubt they would take it. My predecessor was a fool for trying to create a ship he could enslave. That damn Seed not only negated Mu's Chaos Crystal, but it freed her from her slave bondage as well. He underestimated them badly and nearly paid the price. I had quite a chuckle when I discovered it had been brought to earth and left to rot in the museum. It made for irresistible bait, and Mu provided a convenient distraction away from the real trap."

"They aren't dead," she complained.

"They will be soon enough. Either drifting frozen forever, or destroyed along with this pathetic planet when the closing of the gate rips it to shreds." He chuckled again. "It pleases me to know that they must sit there helpless unable to do anything but watch."

Shadow hissed in annoyance. "I wish sssssssssssssssssssshe would ssssssssstop her sssssssssssssssstupid crying!"

"Feeling the despair and horror of your suppressed self, my pet? The anguish she feels at knowing her loved ones are dying, and that the world she so loves is about to?"

The dragon-girl snarled. "She is useless and weak. They are but food to be devoured!"

"Yes." He motioned and one of the slave girls came and knelt obediently before the throne. "Much like these. Are you hungry, my pet?"

The dragon girl licked her lips eagerly as she lunged forwards to sniff at the unmoving girl. Drool dripped to the floor as she circled her, tail lashing as she reached out a claw...

"What's the matter, my pet? Lose your appetite?"

Her claw trembled in the air scant inches from the girl's unresisting body. It hovered there for a long moment, the trembling getting worse. Finally she snarled in absolute rage and sent the girl tumbling with her tail, unhurt. Her claws left gouges in the metal floor as she returned to her cushion.

"Ssssssssssssshe sssssssssssssmelled sssssssssssssssssspoilt," she lied as she pouted.

"Of course, my dear pet. Do not worry though. Once we have emerged over Tokyo and channeled all the collected life force through the Black Crystal into you, she will be purged."

Shadow nodded emphatically. "Good."

"And once you are freed from her pathetic morality, your power will help me overthrow my mistress and assume my rightful place as god." Xi'an Chi reached down to pet her. "I've waited more than a thousand years for Chaos to fulfill her promises. I have grown weary of waiting. A thousand years of living a pathetic existence as the leader of a worthless guild of assassins when I was supposed to have been sitting on Odin's Throne. Once we have charged you with the life forces of the countless dead, and removed the lingering taint of my accursed sister, you will be a fit weapon to rid me of the leash that has kept me groveling at her feet. I will not end up the pathetic wretch that this universes version of me had become."

Shadow purred happily as he petted her head. "And when sssssssssssshe has finally dissssssssssappered..." the dragon girl looked at the slave girls and licked her lips again. "I feassssssssssssssst."

0

"Mu will be within their sensors range in ninety seconds."

"Alright, it's too late to try and disable that thing. If we actually succeeded, it's likely that we'd not only kill Zhu-Shu when it crashes into the planet, but now that Crystal Tokyo is destroyed, that thing is probably our only ticket home."

Tao-Ching nodded. "How are we going to get inside."

"There are five landing bays. Now that the other ships have gone, they should be empty."

"I don't like the word 'should', Ukyo."

"Me either, but we've got no choice." She looked at the others. "Ami, Nabiki, we're going to need all the shielding you can give us. Rei, Mina, Mako, I'm counting on you to blow a hole through their shields and the bay doors." She looked over at Mu. "I'm sorry, hun. This is probably going to hurt. The rim is heavily defended."

Mu swallowed hard as she took a deep breath and tried to look determined. "Mu understands. Mu will do Mu's best. Twenty seconds."

Ukyo took the grips in hand. "Hang on everyone, This is going to be a rough ride."

0

Emeraude looked up in shock when the alarms went off. She looked at the monitors and then back at Xi'an Chi in fear.

"What is it now, Emeraude?" her master called from where he sat petting the black dragon girl.

"S- sensor just detected the Mu coming into range."

He snorted in annoyance. "Of course. They're on a dead ship with no way to repair it without a new Yggdrasil Seed, and somehow, they still manage to get it working again. Remind me to kill the other gods when I become one. I am getting tired of their little games."

"Y- yes master."

"A pity. I would have preferred to give them a slow lingering death. I suppose it cannot be helped. Destroy them."

0

The Mu-San weaved between energy bolts like a dancer as Ukyo frantically strove to avoid a fatal hit. She tried to stay in the zone directly above the central castle in an effort to minimize the number of weapons the Tianlong could bring to bear, hoping that she could get them into the "shadow" of the ship, the zone where the defense weapons mounted on the rim couldn't shoot due to limits on their firing arcs.

Mu whimpered as the ships wings took several hits that pierced the solar sails, but she continued to look determined as she flinched away from near misses. Ami and Nabiki were both letting out small grunts of pain as well when their shields took a direct hit.

"Almost into the shadow cone. Just a little further!"

Nabiki yelled "Shit!" as Mu screamed in pain. Usagi cried "Oh God, Mu just lost her right wing!"

"Try to heal her! It's not necessary for combat maneuvers, but it'll cost us engine output!"

Usagi nodded as she put her hands on her Moon rod and the crystal started to glow.

Then the energy blasts stopped. Ukyo sighed in relief. "Alright we've got about forty seconds until we curve out to the rim and back into the thick of it. Rei, Mako, Mina, be ready!"

0

Xi'an Chi looked at the ship and sighed. "A thousand cannon emplacements, and all they hit was a wing." He raised a hand, a dozen hexagrams forming rings around it. "Why must I always be forced to rectify my underling's shortcomings?"

0

The beam cut straight through midships, knocking the ship into a spiral as Mu collapsed to her knees, coughing up blood. Ships power fluctuated wildly as they descended towards the larger ship uncontrolled.

"What the hell was that!" Ukyo screamed.

"All I saw was a brilliant flash from the castle!" Makoto yelled back.

"We've taken a hit to the middle of the ship!" Usagi cried. "The sensors keep flickering, I can't tell how bad it is!"

"Mu- mu- hurts!" Mu sobbed, holding her belly. "Mu hurts really bad!"

Clove was next her, her hands glowing intensely as she chanted rapidly. Ying-Ying had a hand on her head. "This isn't good, she's going into shock!"

"Shit shit shit shit." Ukyo tried to get the ship back under control, but the grips were unresponsive. "We're going down! Ami, Nabiki! Full shields in front! Rei, Mina, Mako! We're going to have to try and cut a hole dead ahead! All hands brace for impact!"

Three senshi attacks lashed out dead ahead, the mystical shields around the Tianlong shimmering for long seconds as the falling ship drew closer and closer, and then they went through it to impact into the wooded artificial parkland on the top of the main ship. A swath of woods caught fire as the relentless assault drove a hole into the ground.

Then the Mu-San ripped through the rapidly closing shield, tearing off her left wing as she tumbled to the ground below. She hit the edge of the hole hard and threw everyone through the air. Clove screamed in pain as she slammed against Makoto's console, her leg breaking with a audible snap. Mu jerked to a halt in midair as she reached the length of her tail, crying in agony before she passed out. Konatsu's clone slammed hard against the forward bulkhead and poofed into smoke.

Then the sliding ship jerked to a stop, leaving them tumbled in a heap. Groans of pain came from the girls who were tangled against each other on the floor at the front of the steeply sloped deck.

"Ow ow ow, Rei! Your wings burn!" Mina yelped.

"Sorry, sorry!" Rei rolled off her to slide down the console with a thump. "Ow!"

Ukyo managed to drag herself up to sit on the edge of Tao-Ching's console. He was shaking his head to clear it, his harness having kept him in his seat. She looked around the darkened bridge.

"Who's alive! Roll call now!"

It took a minute or two to sort out, but she confirmed that everyone on the bridge was alive. Ying-Ying managed to get the unconscious Mu up into the command chair, so that she was no longer dangling in mid air, and was relieved to report she was still alive. Then the lights flickered back on, and Usagi's console lit up. Ukyo breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank the gods, she's still got main power and her self-repair functions have been activated." She looked up as Ranma forced open the bridge door. "Good, you're okay. How are the others?"

"Nabiki's injured. She's got a piece of strut through her shoulder, but it's not life threatening. Kagura is tending to her. Everyone else is banged up but functional."

Clove suddenly screamed. They turned to look at her, her hands glowing as her leg twisted itself and reset the broken bone. She gasped for breath as she shuddered and fell back against the wall she was laying on. Ying-Ying and Rei went to her side, but she waved them away. "I- I - have already set the healing spells. But bone does not heal quickly. It will be several hours until I can move."

"Then you are definitely staying here."

"We're going somewhere?" Ranma asked.

Ukyo nodded. "That blast that knocked us down came from the Castle. There's no weapon emplacements in the castle, so it had to have been Xi-an Chi. And if he's there, you got to know that's where Zhu-Shu is too. So, those of us in good enough shape are going to head there, while the rest of you try to heal Mu enough to get her operational. Any healing magic you cast on Mu herself should help her self-repair systems. We need her flight capable when we get back with Zhu-Shu, because she's our only way off this thing." She tapped her head. "My own sensors are reporting far fewer people on this tub than I had anticipated. We've got about fifty headed our way and they'll be here in about five minutes, but that's all the life signs in range. This massive ship is damn near deserted."

"So who's playing defense besides me and Kuno." Tao-Ching asked. "Because I am not leaving Nabiki here wounded, and Tatewaki's attacks are too dangerous in confined spaces."

Ukyo nodded. "Good points. Ying-Ying is staying definitely. She's the Physician after all."

The pink haired girl frowned. "I'm fully qualified as a doctor, but I don't know many healing spells. I'm trained primarily as a spirit healer. I'll do what I can, but without medical supplies, I'm somewhat limited."

"Do what you can, Blossom. That's all I can ask." Ukyo gave her a tired smile. "I'm sorry love. But you're not much of a fighter. I know you want to come, but I need you here more."

She nodded. "Just- Just bring Zhu-chan home safely."

Ukyo looked over to Clove. "Ko-chan, can you still make clones?"

Clove nodded as her eyes turned brown. "Yes. But they will also have broken legs. But if someone helps me to the proper spots, I still have my shuriken. Nothing will board this ship while I live."

"It will not come to that, My lady. Not while the blade of Tatewaki Kuno stands to your defense." Kuno's voice came over the intercom.

Ukyo looked up. "Ship's coms are on again. Good. Mu is healing. Alright. Senshi, Ran-chan, Akane and Shan-Pu, you are coming with me. Kuno, Kagura, Nabiki, Tao-Ching and Konatsu, you are going to be the defense team. Keep this ship safe while Clove and Ying-Ying get Mu healed. We are going to go get Zhu-Shu and bring her back."

"Got it." Nabiki said. "Shan-Pu is helping me get to the rear defense station. I can keep the rear of the ship covered and keep us from catching fire from that bonfire you lit on landing."

"I have the hold access hatch opened. There appears to be a large room beneath us, with scattered crates." Kuno reported. "I have also found a rope."

Ukyo nodded. "Save it for an emergency. We'll be going down a different way. If Ship's coms are operational, so should the teleportal systems. Meet me on deck three, forward. Which reminds me, has anyone checked on Kanna and Chibi-Usa?"

"They are fine." Kagura's voice came on. "Kanna has chipped herself, but will mend, and Chibi-Usa is still unconscious but unchanged. She was wrapped in blankets and was cushioned during the crash by pillows."

"Alright people, lets boogie. We got less than two minutes to get to the floor and meet that group on its way here."

0

The air howled as the gate split the sky open. Like angels of death, more than a dozen of the spiky crystal ships of Blackmoon descended from the inky darkness. Lights sparkled beneath them as troops began to materialize on the ground.

A hundred rockets launched to impact the craft, explosions ripping across their surfaces as the roar of cannon fire opened up. The sound of assault rifles started as the infantry opened up on the shock troops rushing them in a horde of grotesque figures.

Then the JSDF soldiers released their holds on their human forms. A giant minotaur wielding his hammer flattened a Blackmoon werewolf as it tried to jump him, then engaged an ogre as his smaller companions worked together to remove the werewolf's head before it could recover. In another section of the field, a brawny centaur armed with twin 50 caliber squad assault weapons and a massive ammo pack mowed down charging Blackmoon troops with the aid of a half dozen reptilian ninjas.

A massive explosion rocked the city as the first Blackmoon ship started falling. A cheer arose as the vessel crashed into the buildings on the far side of the tower from where the girls watched. The cheer was short lived though as the remaining ships began to open fire. Argent beams of fire lanced down from the longest spine on the bottom of the ships to begin exploding cannon emplacements.

The air was torn apart as the air support arrived. Three dozen fighter jets screamed towards the hovering ship, launching air to air rockets as they streaked across the zone. Five more ships fell towards the ground as another two exploded in mid air. Then the remaining ships launched their own craft. More than twenty small attack craft emerged from the still airborne ships, joined by another eight or nine that managed to escape the falling ships. The air above Tokyo began to be filled with streaks of light as the dogfighting began.

Then large mystical sigils appeared hovering above nearly a dozen buildings around the perimeter. They swirled for several seconds as globes of light gathered in their centers, and then lanced outwards. The remaining large craft exploded into shards, the debris falling down on the troops below.

Ai cheered as the last ship tumbled from the sky. "We got them!"

"Don't be so hasty, Miss Konjou." Sesshomaru said from beside her. "I have no choice but to assume that was merely the first wave. And we are doing poorly. Far too many of our troops are down already. We've been at peace for too long. We've lost our killing instincts. We're winning this round, but barely."

She looked at him nervously. "Really?"

He nodded as he lifted a earpiece to his ear. "Ready the Hunters. When the next wave comes, it's their show."

0

"Mu hurts Mu hurts Mu hurts-"

Sarhia sighed as she knelt next to the piteously crying girl. The damage done to the ship wasn't fatal, but she knew the poor girl must feel like she'd had a dozen holes poked through her. Mu whimpered as Sarhia's finger tips caressed her forehead, then slipped into a peaceful unconsciousness as Sarhia disabled the ships damage alerts.

No, it wasn't fatal, but it was pretty bad. She'd overheard Ukyo's plans through Mu's coms, but the Chef had no way to know that it would be days before Mu could repair her systems. Even had she left Sailormoon behind to cast Moon Healing Escalations until she exhausted herself, the blast Xi'an Chi had unleashed had done too much damage. He'd missed the engines barely, but the critical control systems were going to take at least two days for the ships limited self repair systems to fix. This wasn't like simply writing an interface protocol. Mu simply did not have the processing power, or the abilities she needed to be functional within a few hours.

And there was no guarantee that they could even save Zhu-Shu.

"No. I can't let myself think like that," she muttered under her breath.

She withdrew from the link and set at her table in front of her monitors. They were all filled with readouts on Mu, and updating her on the status of the ship. She put her face in her hands and sighed again.

"I can't do it! There's not enough bandwidth to link her directly to the Yggdrasil mainframe and use its resources to repair her in time. She's just too primitive. I couldn't do it even if the Yggdrasil Seed had survived. She'd need a Node class mainfram-"

She stopped talking to herself and looked back up at the monitors. All six hands began flashing across the keyboards as a hundred new monitors flashed into existence. The ground under her rumbled.

Pheonixmoon's logo popped into mid air before her. "What are you doing Sarhia?"

"I'm compressing Node Shiva Prime into data form for transmittal to Mu."

"I trust you are aware of the cost to yourself such an action will incur. You are directly linked to the node, if you send it to Mu, you will lose the better part of your remaining powers."

"I know that."

"It's what makes you a greater deity, Sarhia. Without a direct link to the Midgard World node, you'll be little better than a minor goddess like Urd or Belldandy. You'll be defenseless against Hild if she challenges you directly."

"It doesn't matter! Without it, Mu can't repair herself in time!"

"It will do far more than repair her, Sarhia. It'll turn her into a vessel not seen in the mortal realm since before the Jotun wars. With a master class mainframe able to manipulate the reality matrix, she'll be able to create warp gates and evolve her own systems. You'd be putting the power of a goddess into the hands of someone who's little more than a child!"

"And that child is like a pure innocent and uncorrupted version of Zhu Shu! Everything she has done has been for love! Including damn near killing herself to get my soulmates aboard the Tianlong! She's like I was before I discovered I had been born to be some rich brat's playtoy! Like Zhu Shu before her Aunt poisoned her soul!" Sarhia paused in her typing. "What have I done with this power anyway, Pheonixmoon? Created nothing but death and misery. Mu can't use it any worse than I have done, and it will be centuries before she evolves to the complexity needed to access more than Shiva's most basic functions. I know it's a risk. I know it will eventually turn her into something far more than she is now. But that's true of Zhu Shu, and Clove, and all my other soulmates too. Mu might not be a daughter of the Dragon, but she is still a clone of Zhu Shu, Pheonixmoon. I have to trust her. I have to trust that she will not grow up to repeat my mistakes."

"You will lose your abilities to be aware of anything beyond this prison. You won't even be able to access Yggdrasil or myself, nor be able to manipulate your personal reality anymore."

Sarhia smiled sadly as she kept typing. Her childlike form grew larger as her skin turned a pale blue and she reverted to her truest form. The light from the monitor highlighted the scars all over her body, from the thousands of lash marks that crisscrossed her flesh to the two jagged scars on her cheeks that zig-zagged like lightning bolts from the edge of her mouth up to her long swept back and pointed ears. Scars from a half dozen piercings outlined her lips and trailed up her nose, while the rear edges of her ears were ragged and torn, mute evidence of the violent removal of multiple earrings. Long fangs poked out of her upper lip, while a long hairless tail lay limply on the floor behind her. She sighed as she said, "All that means is I can't give into my vanity anymore and play at being the innocent child I was before I was sold from the slave farm. I'm a scarred and battered ex slave created with six arms and a tail to be a dancer for a man with a fetish. I am tired of being the "Mother of Demons" Pheonixmoon. Hells, even being a minor goddess sounds like too much of a chore anymore. I'm sick of power, of holding the fate of millions in my hands. I can't bear anymore! My child is in pain, and I have the power to heal her. My loved ones need her healed and able to remove them from harm once they have rescued Zhu-Shu. Right now, that's all that matters to me."

One by one, the monitors shut down and the shaking quieted down. Finally only a glowing blue dot remained in front of Sarhia, with two small buttons, one saying continue, the other cancel.

"Keep an eye on them for me, Pheonixmoon. If they fail, it doesn't matter what happens to me anyway. I don't want to live on without them anymore."

"Of course, my lady."

Her finger hit the continue button. "See you later, maybe."

"Fare you well, Goddess Sarhia."

And then, there was only the dark.


End file.
